undergrounds | Freeze, freeze, thou bitter sky [Open]

Entry tags:

Freeze, freeze, thou bitter sky [Open]

1. Bulding glass houses
Mab had finally staked out her home, something that had before been more of a manor she now was pouring will into, icing the facade. She'd been working intermittently for days now, spilling enough magic into the structure each time to build a new layer of ice without completely draining her resources. It simply wouldn't do to be caught out without some of her strength to use. By now the building reflected the sun back in glacial colors, and almost seemed to have it's own inner glow, a pulsing of variable colors that matched her eyes and would leave those without strong magic entranced if they gazed too long. The ice was thick enough that you could no longer see the stone that had originally created the structure and you could also no longer see the door. Icicles hung like deadly spears from the eaves and the windows glittered with facets.

She pulled her hands away from the side of the building and stepped back, breathing in deeply before looking up at her work. It was nearly done, a few more days and it would be a solid defense, beautiful, remote and deadly, standing at the top of a hill bare of trees though they gathered around about a half a kilometer from the base of the hill. She shook a hand as though weary before straightening completely and giving it all a proud look. Yes, this would do nicely. Snow started falling just in the general area, carpeting the top of the hill and scattering down into the grass and heather. The snow muffled all the other noises in the area making everything feel even more remote.

2. Air and Darkness

A pale figure seemed to shimmer into space between two trees in a wooded area of the Southeastern Greenbelt. As if she'd taken off a black cloak and let it fall to her feet she stepped out of the darkness and onto the grass overlooking Crystal Palace Park. Following her as though congealing at her feet is a creeping fog, a result of her own natural coolness hitting the warm summer air. In the darkness she puts a hand out to touch the worn stone pillar on a set of stairs leading down from the Italian terrace she is standing atop and ice forms along it, spreading along the surface and making soft cracking noises as the cool expands inside the stonework. Lambent eyes take in the area, assessing who is nearby. Even as she begins to walk down the steps, the fog starts spilling down them in her wake like a living thing, silent and sinuous.

Her gown trails down behind her and it is difficult to see where fabric stops and fog starts, it all blends together.

3. Newfangled technology

Mab stood unnaturally still, looking up at the sign above the store. The sign did not sound like it should sell cellular telephones but the window displayed them. The sign should be changed. She had the strong urge to fix it for them because it annoyed her. Finally she took a noticeable breath and her head moved, dropping to look at the door which hand a metal handle. Humans loved metal far too much. It was why she found gloves necessary but she still did not like to touch the bane. Even through her gloves it burned a little. Instead she waited a moment more for someone to open the door and she followed them in, letting the door close behind her without ever touching it.

She stopped again inside the store and looked askance at the rows of different phones many of which also seemed to have metal housing. The air in the store was cool enough it didn't noticeably cool when she entered but the window on the glass door behind her fogged a little until she began to walk farther in, eyes scanning across displays that seemed to be written in English but for the life of her none of them made any sense at all. Abbreviations, numbers, features. She stared down at one of the little cards and then looked up at the displayed phone. The screen glowed with pictures splattered across the screen. Tiny tiny pictures.

4. Anything else!
Hit me up, I know there are a few people I mentioned wanting to meet, if these don't fit for you let's work something out, baby.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Oh!

... In hindsight she needs to stop being so surprised that there are people who can see her in her haunting spot. It's going to happen given how long she's been around and how more and more of the others are coming out to the city. Maybe she's surprised by how often it's happening compared to before. Nevertheless she looks at the person, a woman, talking to her and gives a sheepish smile.

"I know but it feels rather rude to not give one at least," she explains, her tone warm and her reasoning sensible in her opinion. Just because they can't hear her doesn't mean she shouldn't at least try to. Who knows? Maybe one of them can hear her but only a whisper, a mutter.

"You're not worried about people overhearing us?"

The idea of being rude when no one knows you've done it in the first place seems baffling to Mab. She considers it for a moment with a thoughtful expression. "Habit?" She finally suggests. Even if someone hears a mutter, they would not understand what the apology is for after all.

Sipping her tea again she sets it down on the saucer and taps the handle with a finger. She's veiled for observation. People know she's there but they're not paying her much attention. Sort of like a 'don't look here' field that makes her wholly uninteresting to those she does not wish to notice her, which might seem like a feat itself considering her odd pale skin and white white hair and clearly expensive clothes. This coupled with the mantle of privileged she wears as though a queen at her throne make her normally more difficult to ignore. Instead of mentioning that she smiles a little, "People speak to the air regularly now, it would seem." She cants her head in the direction of a man with a cellphone in hand and a wire leading up to his ear having an argument with someone miles away.

Following the direction, she spots the man and tries not to giggle at the sight of the man looking angry as he argues over the reservations of a restaurant that was supposed to be used for a luncheon with some clients. "I suppose that's one of the perks of technology these days. It can almost explain everything that we do."

Which is good. She would hate to be trouble for the lady here if someone thought she's talking to herself without one of these fancy little phones.

Now finding this a good time to enter another topic, she says, "I hope I don't sound rude but I've never seen you here before." Clara would know. This is her haunting grounds and it's only been 'recently', the last five years or so, that she's begun to really explore London. She spent a lot of time just being here, watching and observing the shop or the playgrounds. "I certainly like to think I would remember someone stunning as you, miss...?"

Perhaps not everything but it made things convenient when one wanted to carry on a conversation. The veils didn't have to be as complex.

Ahh compliments. She did know how to temper her questions for fae. "It is my first visit." She agreed though if it was to the coffee shop or to the general area was entirely interpretable. "You may call me Ms. Sommerset." She replied, lifting her teacup again for a sip as she observed the incorporeal woman. She was middle aged and had a kindly expression. Mab mirrored it with one of her own. She could fake humanity when it suited her. "Can you sit?" She asked curiously.

"If I concentrate hard enough," she admits, seeing no problem with answering the question. "I'm Clara. It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Sommerset."

She knows better by now than to give her entire name to new people if they can see her. Fool her once, shame on you for trying to chase her out of the realm of the living. Still, the lady is affable enough that Clara's smile stays warm and sunny as she attempts to take a seat at the table. The commotion across them involving the girls and the poor worker enough to have no one notice a chair slowly pulling back on its own, seemingly, as she takes a seat.

"How have you been enjoying your time here at the shop so far?" Clara asks when she's on the seat properly, sounding more clear and loud compared to seconds before. Now that she's concentrating on being more in-tuned with the real world, it's starting to show. "I hope your drink is agreeing with you. I never got a chance to have it myself when still alive but I promise you the people here do their best to make a nice cup for their customers."

"I am finding it fascinating as well, Clara" Her response to the greeting is more unusual but that tends to happen with the fae and her pronunciation of Clara's name is remarkably spot on as far as inflections and tone go.

It is interesting to see Clara focus and pull the chair out. It takes a great deal of spiritual strength for the dead to so affect the human realm. It is an impressive display for a ghost. "I am finding it far more agreeable when I purchase tea." She replied. "It is more than passable. The British know their tea."

"Tell me about yourself, Ms Clara."

Considering how often she's used to people not getting her last name right on the first try, she's quite impressed by how well Ms. Sommerset has her first name down. Clearly she's around a sophisticated lady and needs to be on her best behaviour for this.

"Me? There isn't anything special besides this." She gestures to herself, indicating her presence among the living. "I moved here when I was quite young and married and had children. Nothing inspiring."

Her passing wasn't even that memorable in on itself, now that she thinks about it and she does. She does a lot. "A cold got the best of me and I never really recovered from it. I spend most of my days either here or wandering around, looking after my granddaughter or spending time with friends I made over the years, Ms. Sommerset.'

Clara almost seems innocent. Mab can nearly feel the ghost's non-agression as a physical thing. Like a hug might feel. Which is a distinctly odd sensation for her. "And yet you find yourself wandering the mortal plane. It takes something unique to bring about such a thing. Strength of will, pure contrariness, stubborn tenacity." Judging by the mention of family and friends, Mab has the inkling it has to do with her ties to those she loves. Not being able to let go. A shade can be strongly effected by love, as much as a living being can be so.

"A noble pursuit, looking after those left behind Madame Clara."

"There's no need to call me 'madame' at all!" If she could blush, she would and she does in a way with how her cheeks colour. Despite the fact she has no blood running through any veins of hers and she has no veins to speak of. "Being called 'Clara' is absolutely fine with me. I was born as a normal woman and I would like to stay a normal woman."

Her new life as a spectre aside. It's not too bad. She gets to meet wonderful characters these days like the noble lady in front of her and she does her best to give a good impression, sitting primly and looking friendly as possible. "I like to think one should add 'utter confusion' when listing the reasons why someone would stay around. I had no idea I would be a ghost."

No one does until it happens, she supposes. She tilts her head, a bit (no, very) curious to know about Ms. Sommerset. "It certainly sounds like you speak with either knowledge or experience about this sort of subject."

Mab generally uses some sort of title she pauses at the request not to use one. And a single name. Hmm. A brow goes up as it is quite clear Clara left normal behind several years ago when she left her body behind. "There is nothing wrong with being extraordinary... Clara." She replied but it was clear she was not going to argue with a ghost over how normal she might or might not be.

Mab sips her tea, thoughtfully watching the ghost across from her. She smiles a little as Clara acknowledges she has some sort of knowledge about ghosts. Indeed she does but Mab isn't generally very good about charity even with knowledge. "I am knowledgeable about a great many things. Knowledge is something of a trade of mine." And wasn't that the truth.

"Like a lawyer!"

Enthusiasm aside... No. Quite far from that, very far, and nowhere near the truth at all. At least she didn't phrase it into a question and make it a bother for Mab to answer? Clara smiles, interested to hear more about Ms. Sommerset. Intrigued and only from a few words too. "I must say: I'm surprised that someone, well, like you would spend time here during what I must presume is a break of yours."

Not an insult to the shop, which at the end of the day is her heart and home, but she's surprised to see someone so classic and elegant as Ms. Sommerset here with the younger students and frazzled regulars. Maybe she's trying out new things?

"I was under the impression that knowledge wasn't necessarily the goal for lawyers." But heck yes she was like a lawyer. Misinformation was part and parcel of the whole fae thing. Mab tilted her head as though considering Clara's surprise. "It is... remarkable what you can learn in a place like this. People talk without considering all the others around them." Surely Clara must know, they couldn't even see her. She must hear even more.

"I consider it time well spent." She sipped the tea. "And the tea is passable."

"I understood it as interpretation of knowledge. I mean! It makes for great leverage later on in their cases from what I understand."

She looks a bit uncomfortable when its mentioned how when people don't feel as concerned about people around them, they have a habit of talking more. Its true but at the same time, "I do my best to not eavesdrop on them but yes, sometimes I hear snippet of things that are private. Try my best not to! That' their lives after all. Like Cindy's. The one who made your tea."

"Ahh, I see." That made some sense. It wasn't like Mab knew the human court system very well. But it certainly applied. "Yes, this fits."

Mab is completely unconcerned about listening in on people's lives. Mostly she just doesn't care about the day to day of mortals. It is tedious and unimportant. But how they deal with one another and how to act around one another is another matter entirely. Their figures of speech and the way they dress is also of interest to her. And of course, the mortals with power hold far more interest. A place like this might be privy to details that would assist her greatly in the future. "Anything discussed in public should be expected to be overheard. If someone does not wish it known by strangers it would be wise not to broadcast it, no?" Mab's eyes drift to Cindy who is behind the counter chatting with a male coworker. "Cindy?" She asked.

"A little trouble here and there," Clara says, "and that's all I want to say on the matter! It'll be rude to gossip behind her back when she can't even find out if she is being gossiped or not."

Being talked about behind one's back is awful. More so if the gossiper is a ghost. That's extra rude. Clara finds herself privy to a lot of things she shouldn't know thanks to her existence. If she can't keep away from those scenarios, literally stumbling upon them by accident or being right there when it happens, the next best thing she tries is to keep it as it is: A secret.

"And I mean, that's true but I suppose it depends on the person." And clearly Clara is someone who doesn't like to eavesdrop on people willy nilly if she can help it. "And you know how people can be! So different and varied from how we eat to how we act to certain things. Its hard to predict what will go at times no matter how average we seem day-to-day over coffee and biscotti."

Clara became visibly upset, and Mab tilted her head a little, curious at the outburst. After all, Clara had been the one to bring up Cindy in the first place. Mab definitely did not understand Clara's concern. But again beyond what it could do for her, Mab rarely considered what another being might feel.

"Yes, the variations are why I am observing." Mab generally used the law of averages. Watching how people acted she got a general idea of was was socially acceptable and what was not. Clearly many of these people felt differently about gossip than Clara did. The girls with their newly warmed drinks were giggling and talking about a friend without a care in the world.

Cindy was mentioned only as an example but now Clara realises that she herself should be careful on what she said. If she doesn't want her to get dragged into this, she shouldn't have said a thing in the first place. That's something to remember.

I guess you can old ghost can learn new tricks. How about that?

"You're interested in seeing change of others?" Clara asks, smiling in genuine interest. That's quite a statement to say. "A lot of people often seem so concerned with only theirs, not others."

"I am interested in seeing the vast changes in culture." She replied, making it clear that small changes weren't as important to her. Individuals were just to individual. One had to observe a group of people to really understand the nuances. That, of course, did not mean she did not also plan to eavesdrop. She very well did if a supernatural creature came in and gave out information that would help her in the future. But the ghost was already so concerned about the human's personal privacy, she wasn't about to upset her over something the woman could broadcast warnings about.

"It is a foolish person who keeps themselves insulated from those around them and those that affect them." She replied with a soft lift of one shoulder.

"That's certainly one way to take it." She never thought much about that, honestly. What was outside the world beyond her comfortable routine of coffee shops and chatting with people she knows won't do her any harm. It's safe but very... sterile, is the world? No. That sounds too clinical.

Static. That might be the best word that comes to mind for now.

"Sounds like you've seen and observed a lot of things," she compliments Ms. Sommerset, her expression warm and curious. "Has anything caught your interest here in our fair city?"

It was probably safer for a ghost not to think too drastically about change. It could untether them completely. The more stable her world is, and the more connections she can make the better of she'll likely be.

Mab considers the question. "Powers are moving in your city, events have begun that cannot be stopped. There is much of interest here. It is important to see the whole picture." It was more than she would tell most people. Perhaps it is the absolute sincerity with which the ghost has refused to gossip about strangers that gave her the freedom to do so. Or perhaps it was a whim. It sounds like a portent but it only observation.

That sounds very... alarming. More than alarming. Worrying.

It's impossible to hide her look of discomfort and fear as she stews over the knowledge she now knows, trying to imagine what sort of powers would be here and what they wanted exactly.

Would it be for the good of everyone? For the few? For their chosen? How will they go about it?

"... Now I can't help but wonder how I could give a hand even if I see the whole picture then," she wonders aloud, genuinely wanting to be involved. That way she knows the people she cares for are safe but-- What exactly? She's a ghost. There's not much she can do but make someone's coffee stale and ruin someone's attempts to download a video. "I'm sorry if I sound like a Debbie Downer but it is something that concerns me. A little butterfly could maybe stop a tornado but it'll get ripped in the process."

Is there much one person can do compared to powers and events they can't stop at all?

There are always powers, unfortunately, but the movement currently is greater than normal. Clara will likely be unable to avoid it sooner or later.

"Knowledge is often a deciding factor. Be informed. It is why I sit here now. Learning the movements of your city. Listening for whispers of information." Mab let her gaze fall entirely back on Clara as opposed to the unfocused look she'd given previously. "Knowledge is something even a ghost can obtain." It wouldn't be particularly safe to gain knowledge but it wasn't like jumping into a fight with nothing but what was left on earth of your soul. "You are the only one who can decide how you wish to involve yourself if you wish to do so at all. It would, perhaps, be safer not to do so. Even knowledge can be dangerous to those who have it."

"But it can help people."

That's what she wants to do at the end of the day. She has no desire for fortunes or glory or anything like that. No, she has simple needs since she's a simple woman and all she wants to do is help people. Specifically her friends and her only family member left.

If she's still here, with just her soul and nothing else, she's going to make the most of it by helping others out so they can enjoy their lives without struggle.

It was always done in little ways, however, and she always thought to herself there could be more that can be done. Now, she thinks there's an opportunity in front of her to do something bigger than just leave a note to remind someone to sleep early or drink a glass of water. "It'll be safer but I don't think it'll be the smarter option here. What's that phrase? Knowledge is power? I like to think it applies to what you just warned me of."

"Knowledge can help many, yes." Mab couldn't disagree with that. Of course it could also hurt people but no need to point that out. Not when Clara was suddenly so much more interested in collecting knowledge.

Clara seemed to make some sort of decision. "I agree. It certainly helps more than purposeful ignorance. Once one knows what is happening it seems to generally benefit them not to ignore it. You wish to play a more active role then?"

"I do!" She nods, certain of her decision. "I want to do whatever it takes to give a hand and make sure everyone is fine. If it means being more aware of things, learning more things, no matter how upsetting it could be, I'll risk it."

Somehow. She wants to help people more. More than just hovering by and asking them to be careful. She wants to do something more proactive if it meant people would be safer from harm.

Not a lot can hurt her at this point. Physically, she means. If there's anyone, anything, that can take risks it would be a ghost and she's a ghost. She had all the time in the world and so she might as well put her hours into something productive for all.

Freeze, freeze, thou bitter sky [Open]

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)