MEANWHILE...
"Where are you?"
Neyen pursed his lips and stopped in the middle of the walkway. There was some kind of swap meet or something happening but that wasn't the real reason he was here. He was here because there were leads to be followed and they brought him here. Right here, in the middle of some swap meet. Neyen turned and looked behind him and then back to where he'd been looking.
There were all types of people at this fair, it seemed. But Neyen was looking for a certain person. Cocking his head to the side, he saw what he was looking for. A fortune telling booth. Sticking his hands into his pockets, Neyen ambled over. Almost everybody around the tent were girls and women, he noticed with amusement. He towered over most of them, too. Some of them looked over at him, some giggled, some gave him a wide berth.
"Hey, is this where the clairvoyant is?" Neyen asked, anybody in particular.
[Still open, so everybody feel free to join!]
To clear her thoughts, Mari decided to go for a walk. She checked her phone occasionally for messages from Rai, but their conversation had strayed from business to something more personal. Actually, it was highly personal.
For as long as she could remember, she had been in love with Rai. They met simply by chance as Rai and his family were passing through her town and it was like something out of a story book. They didn't meet as hunters; they met as teenagers walking through town. Mari remembered the way that he stared; she stared back. And then her father, strict as he was about her interactions with outsiders, pulled her away while her mother jabbered in her ear about being cautious of strangers.
Later that night, at the meeting of hunters, Mari saw him again.
It seemed fated. They fell in love so quickly that neither of them knew what to do with themselves and before Mari knew it, she was pregnant. They had planned on a fall wedding. With a baby on the way, her parents had no choice but to accept Rai--though grudgingly, and her father still hadn't forgiven him to this day.
Perhaps a baby would have kept them together. But after the terrible, terrible miscarriage... Mari couldn't be with him. She worked with him as a part of her longed and yearned for what they once had, but seeing him--just the sight of him--reminded her of what she had lost. Even now, she felt the same. Her heart still ached for her baby, as it ached knowing that nothing would ever be the same again.
Naively, she thought that Neyen could be different but disappointment laid in wait for her there, too. And now, here she was, strolling through the small town aimlessly, waiting for night to fall so that she could meet with Rai for dinner. Admittedly, it was a bad idea. Being alone with him... it seemed unwise. Mari was devoted to Neyen and she loved him dearly, but she had to admit that facets of his personality paled in comparison to his older brother's.
But she still loved him. She was passionate about him--her devotion was unquestionable. And when she caught up with him, she would slap him so hard that his ancestors would feel the sting.
Which, as it happened, was exactly what happened when she caught sight of him--he was difficult to miss amongst a sea of short women. Mari marched up and slapped. She slapped and then lapsed into a slew of curses in her native language, as women screamed and looked horrified all around her.
All he wanted was the clairvoyant. They said she was here and all these women gabbing around him seemed interested in having their fortunes told. Before anybody could tell him where the clairvoyant was, though, he found himself suddenly attacked and he immediately went into defensive mode, his hand going to the dagger hidden within his sleeve. Then the slew of familiar sounding words and the woman he loved was standing there, looking more than indignant.
"Hey! Hey!" He threw his arms up to keep her from slapping him again. As she continued to curse, he looked around and then grasped onto her wrist and pulled her away from the shouting and screaming women around them.
"Relax!" he told the women. "She's with me."
Still, he made sure they were several paces away before he looked down at her and made a slight face. "What are you doing? I'm trying to work here!"
The women acted like she'd shot him or stabbed him in plain sight, which only served to annoy Mari more. These ignorant Americans, she thought darkly as she tried to swing again, only to have her wrist be caught. Mari would have used her other hand to slap him, but was caught off-balance as he dragged her away.
She loved Neyen dearly and would have taken a bullet for him. But that had nothing to do with the deathly laser eyes that she trained onto him. She had been worried sick! Although she didn't say as much to Rai, she thought that Neyen might have been attacked—or worse, killed! He'd been gone for days! No matter how much she called—or Rai called—he didn't pick up and now he was here, strolling through the market?
The cursing in French continued for a while. She yanked her wrist out of his grasp roughly and took a step away from him. "Where the hell have you been?! Your brother and I have been calling and calling, trying to get in touch with you! I thought you'd died! Merde!" Mari made to smack the side of his arm, relieved that he was unhurt, furious that he hadn't even considered them when he vanished into thin air.
"I've been here! This is the last place we said to meet, right? I've been waiting on you slow-pokes. Also," Neyen said, lifting a lazy finger and spinning it in a little circle. "My phone? It's dead. Loooooong story behind that one, baby. You don't want to hear it right now, believe me."
And he really didn't think she did. It had a lot to do with him getting involved in something he shouldn't have--again--and he honestly just didn't want to hear all the lecturing and ranting. He knew Marion meant well and that she loved him and didn't want him getting hurt. But he could do with a lot less of the nagging. It was bad enough how much of it he got from Rai. He didn't need it from his girlfriend, too!
"But here I am." He gestured to the booth nearby. "And I was coming here for answers. Heard they have real mediums here."
"Don't. Even try to get out of this one." Marion's eyes narrowed. This wasn't a matter of her overreacting (the slap might have been but the worrying was not!). Neyen had disappeared for days. He had plenty of time to get in touch with them if his phone had been smashed. The story that he tried to tell had about a million holes in it.
"What do you need with mediums?" She turned to look at the gaudy tent. Women were crowded around it, giggling and whispering. The ones who emerged from the tent looked starry-eyed and were practically floating on air. Hmph. Didn't seem like the one inside was giving out many unfortunate fortunes.
She stepped towards the tent, but grasped onto Neyen's hand. "All right. Let's go in and see how good this one is." There were about a million fakes all over the world, so if this one was real then Neyen had stumbled upon a really valuable resource.
"How am I getting out of it?" he asked, innocently. "My phone really is dead and gone. Do you see one on me?"
But it was his own fault that he hadn't quickly replaced it, knowing full well his girlfriend and his brother would be looking for him. It was the part of him that wanted to be on his own and work things out independently that caused him to keep putting it off. Every time he passed a store with phones, he thought about it and then kept going. Better to be left away from the now anyway. He was kinda on a different mission, anyway.
"Answers," he told Marion. Before he could say much more, Marion was taking control of the situation, as she was wont to, and they were moving past the other woman and entering the tent to go in next. Well, at least it meant that Neyen didn't have to say all the things but he was still not altogether pleased he'd been caught.
Inside, the mediums' tent looked just like one would imagine it to look. There were beads, colorful curtains, and the scent of incense almost choked him, it was so thick.
"Hey," he said. "I'm looking for the real medium. No fakes. And trust me, I can tell the difference." He smiled wolfishly.
Rai would be able to find them inside the tent; there was no shortage of witnesses to the mad Frenchwoman slapping the soul out of a tall, long-haired, attractive man. Neyen was infuriatingly unapologetic for his disappearing act, but Mari was more or less used to it by now. Whatever he was doing out here, all alone, he wouldn't come out and say it. He had secrets that he withheld from her and any time that she tried to bring it up, he spirited himself away.
Now wasn't the time to focus on hurt feelings, however. It was time to get answers. Whatever answers Neyen thought he would glean from these mediums and clairvoyants. Mari eyed the man behind the round table, who looked up at them in mild surprise--probably set on edge by the screaming and commotion outside. He wasn't alone, either. A tall young man with dark hair was murmuring something to him, while he seemed dismissive.
As soon as they entered, the dark-haired one turned as though to leave. But then he stopped and turned to stare at Neyen. He continued to stare for so long that Mari edged closer to her lover and slipped a hand into his, thinking that his interest was... romantic. Seeing her action, he started and quickly disappeared through the back flap of the tent, leaving them with the 'medium' whose smile was gracious--if somewhat practiced.
"Ah, welcome," he purred, in a heavy accent. He was handsome, but in an obvious, flashy way. The crisp waves of his brown hair seemed elaborately arranged. The medium indicated to the two seats opposite him. "Please, have a seat. How may I help you? Are you perhaps seeking answers to the future? Your future together? Hmm?"
"No," he said immediately. That wasn't why he'd come here. There were many questions whose answers he sought but there were a couple of them that he couldn't ask while she was here with him. It pained him to think that way but... Their time apart, it made her weak for him, fond for him in his absence while Neyen started to feel... less so for her. And he didn't understand it. She loved him so; and he wanted her. She was beautiful and smart, everything a man could want in a woman.
But they fought constantly. Constantly. There was something between them, driving a wedge there. Neyen tugged on the end of his long hair and he thought about it, thought about asking the medium what it might be. But a part of him had already made the guess some time ago and it was one of the reasons he wasn't keeping in constant contact with his loved ones anymore.
"I'm not here for romantic questions."
So he would stick with work related questions for now.
"Ancients," he said, hoping to take the medium off guard. "What do you know about them?"
Even Mari looked askance at Neyen, as his question was met with complete silence. Puzzlement on the medium's part, alarm on hers. Ancients. He said it so easily, even though the word was rife with meaning--and danger. To a normal human, it meant nothing. To those who knew, it meant everything.
Mari's hand tightened in his and she reminded herself that this medium could be nothing more than a sham. In fact, everything about the tent said as much. The gaudy decorations and the ridiculous outfit that he wore and that little raise of his brows as surprise worked across his expression, they were all tells.
"Ancients?" the man asked, folding his hands atop the table. Then his expression cleared and the genial smile returned. "Ah! You mean ancestors! You're here to seek wisdom from the dead."
Mari snorted in a clearly audible manner. "Come, darling, this man knows nothing." She shot the fake medium a disgusted glare. "He is a charlatan."
"No," Neyen resisted Marion's well intended attempts to drag him out of the tent. That look on the man's face, fleeting as it was, told it all. He was surprised that Neyen even knew what the ancients were, but of course, he couldn't claim to know what they were himself. So he covered with that stupid lie about ancestors. Neyen narrowed his eyes but his lips formed a well knowing smirk.
"Ancients, not ancestors. I've heard there's going to be some kind of ascension here soon. And I want to know... all... about... it."
He said the last few words with a meaningful stare at the medium. If this was a real medium at all, he must have seen something about them, even if he wasn't involved with them. Neyen knew it was reckless as hell to be doing this and he wished Marion hadn't made herself a target. This was just supposed to be his work and he'd already made a handful of enemies here as it was. Now Marion's face was going to be connected with his.
Damn it. He should have chosen to come back to do this but the words had already been spoken, the challenge already made.
Neyen was... impossibly stubborn. He was like a dog with a bone, fixated on this one medium and his complete lack of knowledge about the ancients. Mari was convinced that this man was a sham; Neyen, however, appeared convinced that he was genuine, or was willing to go to great lengths to prove it.
"Ah... an ascension... I may be able to help you." The man tapped his chin gently. Then he lifted his head and shouted into the back, "Sorin! Please bring me my books!" His smile was dazzling as it lit back on Neyen and Mari. "I must consult my tomes. One moment, if you please. Have a seat." Again he gestured to the chairs opposite him.
"Merde! C'est ridicule!" Mari swore again and dropped Neyen's hand. She stalked outside to wait for Rai, hoping that if Neyen wouldn't listen to her, maybe he would listen to his own brother. With all of his disappearances, the distance between them had grown. She loved him but... sometimes, she had to admit, she felt more like his mother than his lover. Her words fell upon deaf ears, too; it was as if he no longer cared for her, or for her well-intentioned warnings.
She put a hand over her eyes briefly as she exited the tent and took in a deep breath. Neyen could be so frustrating to deal with! And his attitude! He was like a willful, spoiled child! She glanced up and down for Rai. At least Rai was on her side. Rai was always on her side.
"Mari!"
Rai waved in her direction when he caught sight of her bouncy hair. He smiled as he continued to wave a couple more times, then lowered his hand when it seemed as if she had caught sight of him. He met her halfway, nodding toward the tent.
"So did you find out what you were hoping to?" he asked. His smile was still a little cheeky; most people who went for mediums at these things were looking for the answers to whether they were going to meet their Special One, have kids, how many kids, and things regarding money and careers.
"You don't look too pleased," he observed, reaching out to gently squeeze her shoulder.
"Nothing I didn't already know," Mari said darkly as she glanced back over her shoulder at the tent. "That your brother is impossible to talk any sense into!"
But thank goodness Rai was here. The sight of him calmed her and his hand on her shoulder was more reassuring than she cared to admit. Rai grounded her, even though she never thought of herself as the type to have mad flights of fancy. But she knew that she did have a temper and Rai was one of the few people who could disarm her with a single smile.
"He's inside right now, talking about ancients," her voice lowered to a hiss at that word, "to someone who is clearly a fake." While the medium might not know what ancients were or become alarmed, he might let slip to someone who did. Someone who could realize Neyen's identity, who could hurt him. Mari's heart was sore just thinking about it--Neyen becoming the target of hunters, getting shot at and hurt.
"You have to get him out of there, Rai. He won't listen to me but maybe he'll listen to you." Her hand touched on his hand, the one on her shoulder. "Please."
"What?" Alarm broke through his tone at the idea of his younger brother bringing up Ancients in front of fakes. Even worse, if the person wasn't a fake! A fake wouldn't know what that meant. A real psychic, though... Or a real witch... Here... Rai could feel his heart beating faster, his line of thought following the same as Mari's. This blatant flouncing of dangerous key words could only cause problems--for all of them.
"I'll get him," he said, eyes narrowing slightly in determination. He took Mari's hand in his and gave it a gentle squeeze, as he had done with her shoulder earlier. Rai couldn't help it; a part of him was still so much in love with Mari that he'd do just about anything for her. In this case, though, he'd also do anything for his brother, who was being a moron. After he let go of Mari, he steeled his nerves and he pushed his way through the group around the tent and threw the flap back as if he had all the authority in the world to do so.
That was the trick, of course. To act as if he had the authority.
"Excuse me!" he said, and upon seeing Neyen, he grabbed him meaningful by the back of the neck. "I need this man."
Sorin labored under a stack of books, having extracted them from the old trunk in the back of the tent. He staggered as he shouldered aside the tent flap and, expecting no help from his brother, brought them over to the low-slung table. "Here... are the tomes," he sighed as he finally unloaded them.
Tomes was a bit of a stretch, though. They looked ancient because they'd been purchased at a garage sale some years back. Sorin doubted they were anything but sham picture books, though a few had quite authentic-looking diagrams. The language inside was like nothing he'd ever seen before, which helped the illusion. He imagined it was Arabic, or some form of Asian text.
As he straightened, he finally noticed the tall man who had come seeking his fortune. Sorin's mouth fell open. There was an aura so intensely dark that it drew in all of the light around him. He'd never seen anything so terrible in his life but before he could say anything, another man briskly strode in and laid a hand on him.
"Here now, you must wait your turn, sir!" Sorin's brother stood up--no less tall than the other two, making Sorin feel like the short end of the stick all around. "You can't do this! Unhand my client!"
"Yeah, RAI, unhand me!" Neyen pried his hand over his brother's on his neck so that he could extricate himself. Fuck, what the fuck was his goddamn problem? Just busting in here and ruining any chance he had to follow his leads! Neyen hadn't even been able to figure out if he was dealing with real magic or mysticism because of Rai's rude arrival.
"Get out of here," he hissed through his teeth, trying to push Rai out. "I have important business."
"No," Rai said, with that Look in his eye that meant he thought he knew better and he was trying to Save Little Brother. Neyen moved away from him and closer to the fortune teller.
"Get out, Rai. I'm fine. I'll find you later."
Rai looked ready to fight but a couple of men in rent-a-cop suits arrived. Neyen smirked. Security. They identified themselves and told Rai they would have to escort him out--all the way out of the festival. Neyen continued to smirk as Rai was led out. Well. That was what he got for pushing his way into his damn business. Once that was taken care of, Neyen turned to the two men in the tent.
"I apologize. My brother's a little... paranoid about psychics."
If Sorin ever thought that his family was dysfunctional, he had never had cause to call security on his brother. Nor had he ever seen his brother dragged forcibly from a tent. Before the flaps fell down, he saw an angry woman outside accosting the security guards. Then their collective raised voices faded as presumably the trouble-makers were escorted off the premises.
"Not at all, not at all. We can't choose family, can we?" Marius looked at Sorin like that comment was meant for him, but his smile was teasing. The number of times that Sorin insisted he was adopted when he was younger—wishing, hoping, praying that he was...
He never belonged with them. His mother and brother and aunt loved him but he also had a strange feeling that they also merely tolerated him. It was a strange mix; it seemed counter-intuitive, to be loved and also barely tolerated. Sometimes Sorin was sure his mother looked at him funny, that there was suspicion, maybe even fear in her gaze.
"Please, have a seat." Marius gestured to the seat opposite him, while Sorin hovered anxiously.
That aura. That terrible aura, he couldn't simply let this man go without at least warning him... But awkward with strangers and not knowing what the best way was to approach this morbid topic, Sorin was hard-pressed to speak up. Plus, his brother was looking pointedly at him, hinting that his usefulness was over.
"I'll... be outside," he muttered quietly, as if to no one in particular. After sending the ill-fated man a desperate pleading look, Sorin stepped outside.
He didn't know when he'd next see his brother and Mari, since they were being taken off the grounds. They probably would wait a while but some part of Neyen didn't plan to be caught again. He worked better on his own, he learned that when they were separated before. They didn't work the same way anymore.
Neyen saw the way the psychic looked at the other man in the tent when he spoke and he got the feeling they, too, had a rocky sibling relationship. Neyen half smiled at the other man but he couldn't tell if he understood the meaning in his smile or not. Turning his attention back to the psychic, Neyen obliged him and had a seat.
But not before he exchanged a look with the other man. What did that look mean? It was like he wanted to say something but somebody was stopping him. Hm. Neyen made a point to note in the back of his mind that he should visit that guy before he left the festival. But for now, he looked over the psychic, trying to decide if he was real or not.
"So... what do you know, then?"
Sorin knew the spiel and the act by heart now. His brother would consult the 'tomes.' Then would come the tarot cards, carefully weathered to look ancient—even though when they bought it from the craft and hobby store, it was shiny and colorful and new.
If his brother knew anything, it was how to read people. But the man inside the tent was different. He seemed more knowledgeable than the average giggling girl and his confidence showed. Who was he? And why was his brother so intent on stopping him?
What were the ancients that he asked about?
Keeping an ear to the tent, Sorin heard his brother speaking, saying that he needed to consult the tomes. He heard the flipping of pages, a low murmur and hum, and then he was launching into a wild guess. A dearly beloved deceased—he could see it in the man's eyes. Grief. He wanted to contact his loved one again. Perhaps a grandparent?
Sorin sighed and turned away. Normally his brother guessed correctly; he had that uncanny knack for hitting on just the right note. But today, perhaps not so much. Maybe the commotion flustered him and took him off-guard.
"Why's he standing there? So creepy?"
He distinctly heard a woman muttering to her friend. Sorin looked at her, holding his silent gaze a tick too long. She gave him a disgusted look and he quickly turned away, half-hiding behind the side of the tent to wait for the man inside to come out.
Oh. For fuck's sake. After suffering through an obviously practiced little drama, Neyen stood up, eyes blazing. Of all the places, he thought this would be the one. There were things here, in this tiny little town--secrets in every corner, skeletons in every closet. And he ended up with this good-for-nothing charlatan. His lip curled slightly as he stared at the so-called psychic.
"You're wrong. Everything you just said. You're full of shit."
He was a fake. A fraud. A goddamned phony. And for two seconds, Neyen almost bought into the bullshit. But he wasn't one of those giggling girls looking for love fortunes or those older women who thought they had to know every little thing about the future. (Hey, it wasn't him being misogynistic--look at that line out there and it was almost all women!)
Flinging the curtain aside, he stormed outside, annoyed that he wasted his time on another fake. Why was it so damned hard to find a real psychic in a place like this?!
In-dig-nation!
Sorin heard it in both the stranger's voice and in his older brother's, who demanded payment as the flap of the tent was shoved violently aside. It hit Sorin full on in the face and he wrestled with it for a brief few seconds before hurrying after the irate stranger.
"Wait! Wait!" He cried out—his legs were shorter and although he ran, he was hindered by the crowd. At last, Sorin caught up and reached out reflexively to halt him, placing a hand on his arm. "Wait I have to—"
He froze. The darkness that enveloped the man also swallowed him, until all he saw was nothingness. Black. Cold, deep, swirling. The darkness took over his vision, creeping over his eyes; it seeped into his ears, into his mouth, into his lungs until he couldn't speak or breathe.
Gasping like a fish out of water, his fingers convulsed around the man's arm. When the darkness suddenly lifted, he gasped again, filling his lungs with cool, clean air. "Water. Don't go near the water. Whatever you do—" Sorin's voice rose to a near-hysterical pitch. "Don't go near the water!"
Was somebody talking to him? Neyen turned to see that the other guy, the one giving him weird looks in the tent, was now chasing him down. But something happened. When he touched Neyen, he seemed to freeze. Neyen stared at him as he seemed to come out of what appeared to be a legitimate trance or vision. He's a real one! A real psychic! Neyen grasped onto the man with both hands, wrapping his fingers around the man's forearms.
"What?" That sounded like a warning from a real vision, too. This guy was either a damn good liar or he had real talent. This was what he'd been looking for! But... after the initial excitement, the reality and weight of the words began to sink in. Neyen's grip on the man slackened.
"What?" he said again. "What water?"
It was impossible to stay away from all water everywhere. He had to bathe. He had to brush his teeth. Water as a word by itself was so vague. It could mean anything.
"I'm not sure." Sorin breathed in deeply. The grip of the man's hands on his arms brought him back to reality but he was unsettled by the lingering sensation of water in his lungs and not enough air to breathe.
"It was deep water. Like a lake, or an ocean. Not... a bath or a shower or anything." That would be ridiculous, for such a terrible, dark aura to be associated with something as mundane as a shower. It was a large body of water; this man was going to drown if he wasn't careful.
Sorin gently tried to extricate himself. Being touched was uncomfortable, mostly because of the visions—and also because he was alone so often that people made him edgy and nervous. "Be careful, okay? I know it sounds crazy but please, avoid the water."
So big water. Ocean. Lake. Neyen frowned.
"Wait. Is that all you know?" he asked. It was so vague, but that was how true visions tended to be, from Neyen's limited experience with psychics. Usually whatever they had to say only made sense after the fact. It was pretty frustrating to look back and realize that he should have known. Why did psychic visions have to be a puzzle? Why couldn't they just be more forthright?!
"Listen," he said. "I'm going to be here a while and I might need your help. If you have any more weird visions, I need you to contact me..." He started to grab a pen from his travel bag but thought better of it. "You have a cell phone right?"
"Yes, that's all. I'm sorry, I know it sounds absurd..."
Sorin shuddered as he recalled the haunting sensation of water entering his lungs. Water, water everywhere, filling his eyes, ears, nostrils and mouth. Water flooding into every orifice, a stifling force that couldn't be fought. That was the worst part--the helplessness that he felt. Even knowing that it was a vision, it still terrified him.
"Uh--I'm--yes, I have a phone, but why--" As he stammered his confusion aloud, Sorin was pulling out his phone. He was used to obeying others; his brother, his mother and his aunt all had dominant personalities and Sorin often found himself on the wrong end of a barked order. Not that they treated him like a slave, but he definitely had very little say in the running of their troupe. Now he obeyed commands automatically.
"What do you need my help with? Do you know something?" He paused with his finger on the lock screen, staring at the black aura that shimmered around the man. "Is it... because of your aura? Do you know how dark your fate is?"
Maybe it sounded absurd to most people but it sure didn't sound absurd to Neyen. This was the real deal, what he had been searching out in this little hick town. Now that he was here and he had what he wanted, he needed to keep this guy close. He needed him. Although he definitely got the feeling that the twitchy guy wanted no part in any of this, he had come forward to try and warn Neyen. So now he was in on on this with him. Neyen passed his phone immediately over to the guy, the new contact page already open for him.
He waited impatiently for the other to pass his phone to him but he paused with his damn finger on the lock screen. Even if Neyen grabbed it now, he wouldn't have access. Letting out a huff, he tapped the phone with his free hand, the one that wasn't shoving his own phone into the other man's hand.
"Know something about what, exactly?" Neyen asked. And then he watched the guy staring past him--or around him. Neyen frowned. "What are you talking about?"
"Oh, sorry. Here." Sorin unlocked his phone and handed it over since it was being impatiently asked for. He put in his phone number and also his name, Sorin, and handed it back. "I meant your aura. Your..." He ran a hand over the space before the other man as if to illustrate his point, that a black aura existed which no one but himself could see.
In retrospect, it made him sound a bit touched in the head.
"...I see auras," he mumbled a bit defensively. "Dark auras. It means something terrible's going to happen if it's a black aura and yours is very dark." His brows creased into a frown as he studied the man. The water had something to do with his aura, Sorin was sure of it. He was meant to stop this man from dying—from drowning.
"Only dark auras?" Neyen asked as he entered the information in the phone handed to him. The guy was mumbling again, like he could barely get his words out. Neyen glanced up at him and then back down at the phone as he finished typing in his name and shit. What he was hearing was worrisome but Neyen wasn't like his brother. That sort of shit didn't really sink in and he didn't start panicking over the little things. Sure, he might have some dark ass aura surrounding him like a storm cloud but what did that even really mean? Snapping a quick picture of himself for the contact information, he handed the phone back to the guy, who was studying him like some amoeba under a microscope.
"So what're you saying? What do the auras mean? Where do they come from? Like am I cursed by a magic spell or is it just my fate?"
The thing was, it could be anything from where he stood. Magic was real; he knew that already. But was it magic or just fate itself wrapping its fingers around his throat? That was the part that was important. If it was magic, it could just be dispelled by somebody or something. But fate was trickier to work with.
"Is it because I'm looking into the ancients?" he asked, deciding to just say it outright--because yes, he was doing something not so great for longevity. A lot of people went looking for what he was looking for--and a lot of people died without answers.
"I don't know." These were natural questions regarding the dark aura and Sorin had no idea how to explain what he saw. He saw what he saw. He saw it. The ominous shadow that enveloped... He glanced down at his phone and saw 'Neyen' displayed in his contacts. The ominous shadow that enveloped Neyen couldn't be explained.
Sorin's limited experience with the supernatural was grounded in the sham displays that his mother, aunt and older brother put on. As someone who worked behind the scenes, he always thought that... well, magic was a hoax. The 'clairvoyance' that they boasted about in flashy banners and mysterious flyers was simply a sharp eye and a swift intelligence. His family were clever, no doubt about that, but none of the had a lick of magical ability.
And then there was Sorin, the black sheep. He couldn't even really say when he began to see auras. One day, it happened. He looked up and saw a woman and all of a sudden the world faded until only she stood out in the center of his mind's eye. He saw her future as clearly as a television programme--except more vivid, more detailed, more disturbing.
"I don't know if it has anything to do with your... ancients," he said in a quieter mumble still, shrinking from the flurry of questions. "I'm sorry, I just see what I see. And--"
From behind him, he heard his brother calling and his tone was impatient. Sorin looked over his shoulder; the flap of the tent moved as his brother ducked back behind it, no doubt to cater to another customer. "I-I need to go back." He gestured to the tent as if Neyen couldn't tell that he was needed back there.
"Wait."
Neyen grasped at the guy urgently, holding him in place for a moment. He might have been a bit squirrely but he knew something. Enough to see some kind of dark aura around Neyen. Enough to warn him about the water. Actually, Neyen wasn't even sure why he grabbed onto him because what else could he possibly ask and would there even be answers? Neyen could ask questions until the breath left his lungs but it was clear that whatever sort of ability his new "friend" had, it was too vague to be of much help.
So after a moment, Neyen released his grip and slowly lowered his hand. His gaze searched the other man's, as if he held the answers in his gaze but he wouldn't even look back at Neyen properly. All Neyen really had of him was his contact info. Hefting his phone, he assured himself he still had it, then nodded.
"Contact me," he said, "if you see anything else."
"Um." Gently and unobtrusively Sorin tried to pull his wrist out from under Neyen's grasp, which probably defeated the purpose of the entire move. He wasn't the type of person who could assertively jerk their hand away and say in no uncertain terms that he was not to be touched again. Sorin went through life like a shadow, hoping and praying not to be noticed.
That made Neyen's scrutiny all the more uncomfortable for him. He couldn't look him in the eyes. Neyen appeared fierce and determined and strong, all things that Sorin sadly was not. He shuffled back a step awkwardly with his wrist still held in Neyen's grasp, feeling (and probably looking) caged. His brother called him again, sounding even more impatient, and Sorin gave a stronger tug of his own arm.
"I w--" he began to say, but stopped just short. It didn't really work like that. He didn't see things in the dark of night or whenever he closed his eyes. There had to be a person nearby, someone with an aura for him to notice. Explaining all of that seemed like it would only make Neyen more curious, however, and Sorin didn't want to be grabbed again, so he took a step back. "I will." On the off-chance he did see something, Neyen would be the first to know. Maybe.
"And. Um. Be careful of the water," he repeated gently as something in his chest lurched unpleasantly at the thought of this innocent man meeting his untimely demise. Sorin hastened to turn and walk away, head lowered and eyes on the ground directly in front of him.
Would he, though? It was hard to get a real read on a squirrely guy that wouldn't even look him in the eyes when he answered him. Neyen frowned and watched as the man tried to worm away. Probably heeding the call of that guy impatiently calling for him. Sorin. Over and over again, sounding more and more irritated with him as he raised his voice. What a jerk. No wonder Sorin here was so mousy.
"Hey," Neyen said, although this time he didn't grab onto Sorin to make him stop. He didn't know what possessed him to say what he said next. Neyen had a girlfriend and she was beautiful and he was lucky to have her. But over the past few months, Neyen had been struggling with feelings he didn't want to put a name to. Or not so that he didn't want to... rather, he didn't have the time to. There was so much going on that it was something he didn't have time to stop and entertain. But... still, here he was, standing here, watching this totally mousy type attempting to scramble away and he was opening his mouth... to say:
"After your shift. Let's meet up."
"Wot?"
Sorin was shocked, so much so that he almost forgot how to speak English. It sounded like Neyen... Even so briefly entertaining the thought made Sorin feel ridiculous. Ludicrous. Neyen was likely still curious about that ancients thing he referenced earlier, and the fact that Sorin without prompting began to babble on and on about a black aura and a dark fate.
Slowly he turned around. "I've told you everything I could. I'm sorry, I don't know any more about these... ancients. If I think of something, I'll be sure to let you know."
He smiled, a slow and uneasy, regretful smile. How stupid was he, to even think that Neyen meant anything else? No one needed Sorin; they saw him as an accessory or something unnecessary but 'useful,' like a shoe rack or a cup holder. (It didn't mean that he didn't have feelings or that he couldn't have a silly moment and a flight of fancy, though!)
"SORIN!" A slew of rapid, angry Romanian filed through the tent and Sorin's brother's angry face reappeared. He gestured impatiently with one hand. "I need your assistance. Now!"
"I—I'm sorry. Neyen." He hoped he pronounced it correctly. The name was a foreign one but he liked the way it looked and sounded on his tongue. It matched the man; mysterious, foreign, intriguingly unknown. "I'm sorry. I have to go."
No, no. It wasn't about the ancients. Rueful as he was that Sorin here didn't have the information he required, he didn't just interact with people because of what they could give him. At least, he hoped he didn't. Neyen had been told he could be impulsive and quite selfish, yes. But it was hardly the epitome of selfishness to ask somebody out on a date. However they met didn't matter. Sorin was attractive and maybe a bit mousy but he intrigued that part of Neyen that he had been working hard to ignore. Maybe it was time to stop ignoring it.
Neyen made a face in the direction of the angry fake medium and then rolled his eyes.
"Seems like he's got you on a tight leash," he said, not to disparage Sorin but rather the one doing the shouting. The guy was practically apoplectic over Sorin not immediately hopping to his shouts. What a jerk.
"Anyway, meet me. It's not about the ancients, all right? Just say you'll be there."
A tight leash sounded about right and Neyen, amusingly, wasn't the first person to have said that. Sorin heard that a lot, usually from people gossiping behind his back. It was as if he was invisible; he could be sitting in plain sight and people would overlook him, speaking about him and his family in tones loud enough to be overheard. He didn't eavesdrop; sometimes he happened to be right there when they talked.
At any rate, he smiled ruefully at Neyen's wry face and eyeroll and didn't deny it, only shrugging resignedly. That was the way things were and had been since the beginning. At least he was accustomed to his brother's shouting and gesticulating. This--Neyen's insistence on meeting him later--he was not used to. Sorin would have been crazy to say that he didn't want to know more about Neyen; about his aura, about the ancients and also simply about him as a person.
"All right," he said hastily, fearing that his brother would come stomping over. "I'll meet you." Whatever it was that Neyen wanted, he would have to find out later. And maybe he might have another premonition or vision or... something that could help keep him safe. Sorin half-turned to leave again; his gaze dwelt lingeringly on Neyen. "See--see you later."