Bambi Eyes {August}

[AELLA SHYANNE MUNROE]

She was practicing possessions. It was a skill that the devil gave to demons when they fell, and to be honest, it wasn't something she used very often. Hey, she liked her own body. It was pretty and agile, talented and hot. There were advantages to taking over somebody else though- you could do certain things and get away with it, or cause a problem where there was previously none. The latter is what Aella intended to do here today. Possessing somebody else to an extreme amount of focus, and you had to essentially leave your own body to do it. Don't misunderstand, she could maintain a dim awareness of her self, but there wasn't much she could do with her own skin while she inhabited somebody else. The way she understood it though, she would get better at this with time and practice. She just... she didn't like to practice this particular skill. It was just... ugh. But, the little demon was forcing herself to do it, so somebody, wink wink nudge nudge, might leave her be so she could do what she wanted. Huff. What she wanted. But nooo, Aella, you must pay your dues. Barf. So she'd square her shoulders and do it. Maybe it'd prove useful in her... long-term plan with the boys.

Her body relaxed into a comfortable pose in a nearby seat under an umbrella, as she spied on her victim. He was a security guard for the amusement park, and she had some wicked things in mind for the man to accomplish today... It was easier for her to possess somebody who was distracted, and who she was touching, so Aella relied on a very particular skill set for this: flirting. She captured the man's attention with a look, hooked his focus with a few words, and had him sitting next to her in the space of a few minutes. Thank goodness he'd been interested, because for a moment, she hadn't been sure. He was sweet and in-shape and really just, lovely to look at. But still, despite all of this, he wasn't her body. She just had to grit her teeth and do it. DO IT AELLA, fer crap's sake. She ran a hand over his arm and pushed herself into his space.

Ugh, it was like slipping into a warm, wet blanket. She'd heard it would get easier, and feel more natural, but who would try this and keep doing it??? Honestly... She shook herself, feeling the real spirit pushing on her from the back of her mind. Poor thing didn't know what was happening, and still wouldn't, when he woke up later. Much much later. She pulled him by his bootstraps and commenced making havoc. The demon loosened bolts and started fights, she kicked people out and made rude comments to his boss. The interesting thing about possessing somebody, she somehow got access to their basic knowledge. So she entered restricted areas and screwed with crap that she shouldn't've, and continued her reign of tyranny throughout the day. By the evening, she felt like she was getting the hang of piloting somebody else. But it was still so... awkward.

One of her final acts- because she was running low on energy for holding on to James' body- was to get aggressive and violent with a woman who completely didn't deserve it. It looked like James was yelling and assaulting a woman who had done nothing wrong, when Aella spotted a face she had memorized out of the corner of her possessed eye. Oh no, this wouldn't do at all... August? One of the Noble men was there at the amusement park. WHY? She expected this to be one of the last places they'd frequent. It had factored into her selection process. She hadn't encountered them yet, and she was struggling to keep it that way until she was better equipped.

With a last shove to the woman, and a look at August- who looked downright pissed- Aella ran hard and fast back to where her body was. In her rush, she managed to knock her own petite body off the seat to the ground before she escaped James' form and re-entered her own. She sat up on the ground, feeling a bruise develop on her hip and scuff marks on her elbow, forearm, and hand. She stung and hurt. Ouch. Stupid final maneuver, Aella. She shooed James away, sending his confused ass in a completely different direction.

'Ouch...'

[AUGUST GUNNER NOBLE]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #343434; padding:20px; border-top: 10px #af9390 solid; border-bottom: 10px #af9390 solid;] repair your broken wings ( WORDS ) 755 ( TAGGED ) SMASHLEY ( OUTFIT ) hurr august wasn't in the best of moods. archer had been blowing him off a lot recently; when he asked about it, the other didn't really give him an answer. it seemed like ages before august learned about the girlfriend archer had been hiding. little dick, not telling him about that. didn't august deserve to know?! little punk. jerk. dickwad. he was able to yell at himself for calling his twin such things, but he was pissed. he had earned a few mental curses towards his brother. and shae . . . god dammit, shae. not only had she been alive and found them, but she was a fucking demon. the girl hadn't even hesitated to blurt it out, either. just . . . admitted it. just like that, as if it didn't matter. august just sighed, making his way to the amusement park. he needed something to get his mind off everything. he was tired of hunting for now . . . besides, what was the point of hunting? he just didn't know anymore. geez, and he felt like such an idiot in what he was wearing. shae had decided to take both the twins out shopping for new clothes, but he felt weird. the plaid shirt and converse felt weird. he was too used to his run - down tennies and plain shirts. maybe that was why he never really seemed to get any girls after him, though. looking down at his outfit, he wondered why girls liked men to dress all . . . fashiony. didn't that make them more feminine? why would you want another girl for a boyfriend? nothing made sense to him anymore. the world was just so god damn fucking confusing. why couldn't things be simple, like when he was a little boy? the world was so easy and simple back then. go to school, play with the siblings, do homework, sleep. he sighed and shook his head. no, he was here to forget about all that shit. he was here to cheer himself up, hopefully. did moods work that way? whatever, he could try. he was ripped from his thoughts when he heard some yelling. it was mostly a man yelling, but a woman was yelling back. august jogged over there, elbowing some of the people going the opposite direction. it seemed like people were just trying to avoid the situation; if this was a domestic problem, why was no one else stepping in? fucking weak people, not willing to step in to help a woman in need. the strange male locked eyes with august, gave the woman a shove, and bolted. august frowned and kicked his pace up to a full - on run, chasing after the stranger. he wasn't about to let some asshole get away with hurting a woman like that. the stranger knocked into a woman that looked like she was sleeping on a bench - who did that? maybe she had just closed her eyes to enjoy the atmosphere - and stand there. august was on the man as quickly as he could manage. he tackled the man to the ground and shook him by the shoulders. " the fuck was that all about?! you don't just do that to a woman, asshole! " he screamed at the man, punching him in the face a few times. he had tried to watch his language for the kids, but . . . well, you see how well that worked out. before he could give the man too bad of a beating, security showed up and pulled him off the man. they let august go without asking questioned; apparently they'd seen what the man was doing and knew it wasn't the hunter's fault. panting slightly, august remembered the girl the strange man had knocked over. he turned around to face her, noticing a few scrapes on her arm. must have been from when she fell. august crouched down next to the girl and offered her a hand. now that he was a bit closer, seeing the details of her face, she was really pretty. cute, even. her face was just . . . well, it was like a babyface. it was adorable. he tried to hide his thoughts from his face, hoping they didn't show. that could make this very awkward, very fast. " you alright? bleeding anywhere? " he asked, willing to help. by now, the little circle of people that had gathered to watch was almost gone. had no one cared about the women that were hurt during this? really? trolololol

table by CALIFORNIA DREAMING of CAUTION 2.0, lyrics by maroon 5

[AELLA SHYANNE MUNROE]

The second she'd seen that man, she'd probably gotten a 'deer in the headlights' look on her face. August was, without a doubt, in very good shape, and she knew- by reputation, at the very least- that he was an accomplished hunter. He and his brother were quite a pair, hunting down a variety of supernaturals, and several that didn't deserve it. In this case though, it looked like she deserved it. So she was genuinely scared- well, maybe just worried. She'd caused a severe amount of mayhem for no other reason than that she wanted the practice, and that she could. But she certainly hadn't intended to get caught... Aella didn't like to be in trouble- she liked to start trouble, liked to initiate problems, but she didn't like negative consequences, she didn't like to be punished. It was why she ran like a bat out of hell when August had- very unexpectedly- shown up to ruin her fun. How incredibly rude.

And she was set up to be pissed off. She intended to channel the anger and get out quickly. Too bad he stole it from her. His feet beat a staccato rhythm on the pavement as he chased her- still in James' body- back to her little bench. Pushing her own shape onto the ground had been completely accidental, and had hurt, when she released James from the possession. The scrapes burned, she was pretty sure she'd twisted her ankle, and she had a pretty nasty abrasion that was legitimately bleeding. Dammit. She needed this hot body of hers to stay hot! Fire dancing while battered held a certain amount of appeal, but people far preferred that pretty perfect skin of hers to remain unmarred. She had hoped that James the security guard would take his confused ass elsewhere, but no, he just stood there. August was there seconds- literally seconds- later, to beat the shit out of him. The anger left her then. Annoyance got replaced with awe, and with a twinge of... Oh no. Not that. Anything but that for a man she planned to destroy.

Aella had a weakness- okay, she probably had more than one- for those beautiful, strong, take-charge men. And oo lordy, August fulfilled that weakness. His arms and back bunched and rippled as he swung at the innocent man on the ground, landing with almost-scary accuracy every time. The timing of the 'fight' was only about a minute and half, but she was sure that James had definitely suffered a broken nose, a few cracked ribs, a set of black eyes, and a few other injuries. He'd shouted with some righteous anger, being a good guy, and defending some poor woman. Something in her sat up then, interest piqued. And then there might have been just the slightest hint of guilt for James' predicament. It faded very quickly though, since Aella was well, Aella. And August was just doing a sweet thing, as it seemed everybody knew. So when the other security guards showed up- and it took about five of them to pull him off- they were thankful, and let August go with nothing but a check to make sure he wouldn't launch himself again. That's when he noticed her wounded self on the ground. The look on his face softened to one of honest concern, and words dried up in her throat. He was so frickin' sweet. It was a sharp contrast to the brutality of earlier, and Aella was honestly at a loss. Not to mention, that man was way hotter in person than any picture she'd yet managed to collect- which, trust, had been difficult. His arms were wonderfully muscled, and the fact that she could tell, despite two layers of clothing was impressive. He had a beautiful jawline, and eyes that just grabbed her. Oh. Sigh. Shit.

She took his hand before she had the time to think about it, appreciating the calluses and how much bigger they were than her own. He made her feel petite and soft. Bad bad bad. He asked her if she was okay, or bleeding, and she shook her head, still not finding words. People had pretty much evacuated, since security had taken James away when the altercation was over. He moved to help her up, and she gasped sharply when she tried to put weight on her ankle.

'Apparently, I was wrong... I think- I think I twisted my ankle.' She checked the rest of her body and noticed the blood dripping from her elbow. 'Damn. Um. You wouldn't happen to know where the nearest restroom is, would ya? So I can clean this up,' she clarified. She really did want to avoid August; she wasn't ready to interact with them yet! She didn't know enough about them to have the upper hand. But... Well, she did want to meet them eventually, didn't she? She had plans for them in the future. The future wasn't supposed to be today. But she might as well take advantage of the opportunity to lay some groundwork. Use the opportunity to get in good with him, maybe start some positive interaction? It was worth a shot, and he was already there, trying to help her.

'I know a bunch of people have already said this, but thank you. What was up with that guy? Seriously. Ah!' She grimaced with the twinge of pain as she made moves to walk. Not really the wisest decision, it seemed. Aella wasn't a wienie, by any means, and she had decent pain tolerance from several years of training, but still, jacking up her ankle hurt. Not to mention, it was a good distraction. There was no way she was going to tell him the truth about the incident with James; he knew what a demon was, and as far as she knew, that wasn't a plus. No, she needed to avoid letting him figure out her and reality at all costs. It seemed like she could too, if she was careful. All she had to do was keep him from her back. Not a problem. Keeping her hands off of him though? That might pose a slight issue...

[AUGUST GUNNER NOBLE]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #343434; padding:20px; border-top: 10px #af9390 solid; border-bottom: 10px #af9390 solid;] repair your broken wings ( WORDS ) 818 ( TAGGED ) SMASHLEY ( OUTFIT ) hurr one of the first things august noticed about the girl was that she was that she wasn't really speaking. in fact, he noticed that she had been almost . . . staring at him? taking in detail? in any case, he noticed that she had somewhat examined his appearance. when she took his hand, he was in shock for a moment about how soft and small they were. sure, he knew that his hands were rough from frequent use of a gun or a bow, but her hand was just . . . surprisingly soft. it was odd to the male. the hunter stood and helped pull her up to get her back onto her feet. by now, pretty much no one remained in the crowd. august briefly wondered why he really bothered to help these people in the first place. he killed people to make sure that innocent people like those that were just around them were safe! bunch of ingrates . . . he thought, cursing in his mind. if not for him and his brother, those people could very well be dead right now! none of them knew that, though, so could he really be mad? august stopped thinking about the annoying ignorant people when he heard the girl speak. " apparently, i was wrong . . . i think- i think i twisted my ankle. " august looked down at her ankle to see how it looked. he tried not to make a sound as he saw how it looked; he could see it was starting to swell. it probably was getting purple at this point, too. being asked where the bathroom was, august finally noticed the blood on her elbow. he frowned, thinking about how if he had just stopped that guy a little sooner . . . " i, uh, don't really know where a bathroom is around here. i'll help you walk around until we find one, though okay? " he responded kindly. after a few moments, he added something. " with that ankle, though, you might want to head to the infirmary here or something. i think i passed it on my way here. " he took another look at her ankle. the girl spoke again and tried to walk, but her facial expression gave way to the pain she was feeling. august knew he wouldn't be able to help her hobble over to wherever their destination would be, so he thought of a way around the situation. he hesitated before doing what he planned to do. " it was no problem, really. that guy was being a jerk and deserved it. 'sides, it wasn't like i got hurt, so all's good. just kinda angry that no one cared that you got hurt, or anyone else, for that matter. he prolly got tired of his job or something, or maybe his wife wanted a divorce and just told him over a text. or maybe-- " maybe he was possessed. august didn't want to say that out loud, though. he shoved the thought away; who would be stupid enough to do that out in such a public area? realizing he had stopped mid-sentence, august tried to cover it up. " well, i dunno. maybe something else happened. who knows? it's all done and over with. " there. that outta do it, right? august hoped that she would think that he was just hesitating to name another possibility. it wasn't like he could think of all those things on the fly, right? it was normal for people to occasionally stop mid - sentence and think, right? august was so disconnected with the 'real' humans that, at this point, he honestly had no idea. i need to get out more. august decided they should probably be on their way to get her ankle some treatment. without giving the girl warning, he dropped and put an arm behind her knees, swooping her up to carry her bridal - style. he wasn't really surprised with how light she was; he was used to carrying heavy items, and she was so tiny that he knew she would be a breeze to carry. he started to walk in the direction he came from, heading towards the infirmary. and, honestly, he didn't care if she was going to struggle against him. he wasn't going to watch her struggle to walk. " so, uh . . . my name's august. what's yours? " he asked, hoping to get her attention off the pain he imagined was in her ankle. august also wanted to get her mind off the fact that a stranger just picked her up like she was his wife and was carrying her off. he vaguely wondered if this was something other guys would do. he'd seen some guys in movies do this, but it was usually a shitty romantic movie that ended with them kissing in the rain or something like that. trolololol

table by CALIFORNIA DREAMING of CAUTION 2.0, lyrics by maroon 5

[AELLA SHYANNE MUNROE]

How had she managed to do such a number on herself? Seriously... This was what she got for being reckless. The demon probably wouldn't be able to perform for a few days, at least, which kinda sucked. She liked her job and- not to toot her own horn, though she did enjoy doing that- she was the best fire dancer they had. To be fair though, she also had the most experience... Like, decades more than any of the other wannabes. She may have looked like a fresh new face, but she was really an old grandmother. At least, based on her real age, that was what she was supposed to be, but Aella's personality and lifestyle just wouldn't allow for that. This girl would be forever young. Young and weak. Weak weak weak. Lookit that man, seriously. Was that fair? Was it fair that she had to destroy such a... Yum. NO, it was not fair. The devil was a cruel cruel person, to make her go to such lengths. Of course, that was kind of the devil's bag, wasn't it? She heard August answer her, making his offer to help her get somewhere- he suggested the little 'infirmary' they had, which was really just a suped up nurses' office- which was really sweet, but... Should she really keep talking to him? Really? Was that wise? The demon looked at those eyes again, and was quite sure not. And also quite sure she didn't care. She'd justify it later.

'I, well... I appreciate that, if it's not too much trouble. Though really, a restroom would be fine. I don't think this is that ba-' Her breath hissed in with pain as she tried to put some weight on the ankle. Oh, what was this nonsense? She had better constitution than this, didn't she? No, not really. When it came to pain, Aella Munroe was at the top of the wienies list. She had some training, actually, so her tolerance was better than she acted like it was. Of course, this actually was a legit injury, which sucked, as far as she was concerned. Then again, it was also an excuse to milk it. 'Okay ankle, fine. Prove me wrong. Whatever. Be that way.' She looked down to address the offensive appendage before glancing back up at August with a smile. 'It, apparently, does not care what I think.' She listened to him talk- ramble really- about whatever could've sent that poor security guard into the tizzy the hunter had caught him in. Little did he know, poor baby, that it'd been her all along. And while he was more than aware of the existence of demons, there was no way Aella was going to tell him that he'd beaten up an innocent guy. Who knew what he would do? His sentence paused for a moment- maybe to think, maybe because he was cutting himself off before saying something revealing and 'crazy'-soundng- and he looked back at her, as if realizing he wasn't just talking to himself about his theories anymore.

'Nobody knows but him, really. And what does it matter? Like you said, it's over, and whatever the reason, there was really no excuse for that behavior.' Yep, she'd sure as hell play the offended woman. She'd pretend to take the moral high ground. Why not? Inevitably, she'd been the injured party, and she needed to respond accordingly. Aella looked at the path back up to the entrance, and tried to judge the distance this poor sweetheart was gonna be helping her ass hobble. Probably not that far. She'd chosen a spot fairly close upon entering the park because she knew that when she was done wreaking havoc, she was just going to leave. You paid the whole price of admission just to sit? Yes, yes she did. At least, that's what it looked like on the surface. In reality, she'd paid the admission for the location and the practice. Turned out the location hadn't worked out the way she'd hoped, though she couldn't say she was sorry with about the end result... There was August Noble, sweet and strong and unsuspecting. Could she have asked for better? Not really. He was even taking pity on her, fer cryin' out loud! She didn't want his pity, she wanted- Well, what did she want? Aella didn't even know right now. She wanted to hobble to the nurse station and not look like-

'Aaa!' Her squeak was high-pitched and terribly cute. But damn! She hadn't expected him to pick her ass up! What the hell? She almost struggled, almost demanded that he put her down, but... Um hey. This wasn't so bad. Matter of fact- Don't you even think that thought Aella. Don't even. Just, hang on and try not to die.[/i][/color] So she threaded her arms around his shoulders, landing one of her hands in very soft hair at the base of his scalp, and one holding tightly to a glorious shoulder muscle. Sweet badness... What a guy. He'd picked her up. Easily, without warning, and like a gentleman. She settled against his solid chest, ridiculously- and very unwisely- okay with her current position. And he didn't even know her name.

'Nice to meet you August. I'm Aella. Do you usually pick up girls you don't know in this fashion?' She asked him with a teasing smile, making her words hold that joking double meaning. What was she doing? Was she-? Was she flirting with him? Oh dear... It seemed that she kinda was. Bad bad demon. Ha. The irony of that did not escape her. But maybe this could work. At least, that's what she told herself. He carried her easily, as if she weighed no more than a pillow, which was just not true. She wasn't fat, by any means, but she was tallish, and she did have some muscle on this frame of hers. Still, she proved no more cumbersome to him than a teddy bear. Which was strangely- or not so strangely- alluring. Damn her and her weakness for the strong men. But could anybody blame her? Really? Just look at him. Actually, no, don't do that. Stop looking at him and thinking he's adorable and hot. Do the job Aella. 'So, what is that brings you to the amusement park? And please, don't give me the generic 'amusement' answer... Let's be a little more original, shall we?' What she really wanted to know was, why he had picked the amusement park when she'd picked it- in part- because it hardly seemed like the kind of place he or his brother would frequent. If something had changed, she needed to know about it.

[AUGUST GUNNER NOBLE]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #343434; padding:20px; border-top: 10px #af9390 solid; border-bottom: 10px #af9390 solid;] repair your broken wings ( WORDS ) 1035 ( TAGGED ) SMASHLEY ( OUTFIT ) hurr august knew all too well what pain felt like. physical or mental, it didn't matter. being in the hunter business as long as he had, august had gone through quite a bit of . . . unpleasant situations. this was why august knew all too well how much the girl's ankle must hurt, especially when she tried to actually walk on it. he was half tempted to just laugh at her, but that would probably be considered quite rude considering the circumstances. he held his tongue; if she hadn't been hurt like this before, of course she was try to still walk. you had to get this kind of injury before to know that trying to walk on it is a big, big mistake. when she made a little joke about her ankle not agreeing, august admitted defeat to the laugh. he let out a soft chuckle and smiled at her. " sometimes our body does that. happens to me all the time, " he said, remembering all those times he thought he could stand and fight when he couldn't. well, there were only a few of those times, but they stood out to the hunter. a few times he'd gotten shot or stabbed and thought he could stand and fight, but he'd always fallen down on his ass to have archer save him. thankfully, august had had to save archer's ass in similar situations before, so it wasn't anything the other twin could hold against him. plus, they'd lost count of who - owed - who a long time ago. at the beginning of their hunter career, the twins had kept track of which twin saved which and who got each kill - it was like the lord of the rings right here - but as time passed, they got over it. they didn't care who was in the lead and winning, they only cared about keeping each other alive. she had a good point - only that man knew what he was thinking at the time. well, unless there was an immortal around that was reading his mind, or - no. he couldn't keep thinking that there were supernaturals everywhere, especially demons. if he had been possessed, august would have known, wouldn't he have? none of the usual signs were there, so he tried to get the idea out of his head. he needed to realize that there were more humans than anything else, even in manuka. geez, hunting really has gotten me out of touch with reality . . . i'm thinking everyone is out to kill me or something. i don't think this is healthy. he still had it better than archer. the squeak the girl had made made it all the more worth it to carry her to the infirmary - yes, he was still determined to take her there instead of the bathroom, because at least he could help here there and not drop her off at the entrance like some sort of orphan. august held her firmly while trying to avoid touching anywhere that might make her freak out; it would be obvious that she wasn't going to fall or that his arms wouldn't tire out. her position in his arms was enough to make the hunter blush, but he took a deep breath to control that. sure, it would be a little obvious that he was trying not to get embarrassed at her very cozy position while he held her bridal - style, but it was sure as hell better than blushing in the middle of this place in front of a girl he just met. aella. it was a pretty name. unusual. fitting. she didn't look like your usual type of girl; she seemed spunky, fun, and was probably one of the cutest girls the hunter had seen in a long time. while that wasn't saying much, she wasn't cute in that baby sort of way. okay, she kind of was, but not in that i - would - feel - like - a - pedo - sleeping - with - you way like some girls were, but in a more you're - so - cute - i - could - cuddle - you way. august wondered if that really was a step up, but gave up after a while. he was always horrible at romantic type things and knew he'd just end up mentally insulting her if he continued trying to think this way. the flirting comment went almost completely over august's head; he understood it probably the second before he opened his big mouth. that was a good thing; he would have made a fool of himself otherwise. " hmm, now that you mention it, i think it's become a bad habit. i mean, it seems like every other day that i beat up a guy at an amusement park and carried a cute girl like this to get herself all healed up, " he answered. not having paid much attention to what he even said, august didn't exactly realize that he had called her cute. it had just been on his mind; he didn't know he said that out loud! showing no recognition of his little slip, august laughed a bit at her next question as he entered the infirmary. " well, i kinda came . . . to get my mind off things. just wanted to forget about what's going on in life and do something fun for once, ya'know? " holy hell had it been a long time since august had sat back and had fun. the concept seemed foreign to him, especially since he could only remember it as he had when he was younger. it wouldn't be the same feeling nowadays, would it? one day, august would have to find out. august mechanically set aella down on one of the beds in the infirmary before one of the nurses started looking at her ankle. august took a seat next to the bed and smiled at her. " and what brings you here, hm? looked like that was a nice nap you were having back there, " he questioned with a light laugh. maybe i'll find out what fun is like again sooner than i thought. i hope that didn't suck, it's late xD

table by CALIFORNIA DREAMING of CAUTION 2.0, lyrics by maroon 5

[AELLA SHYANNE MUNROE]

August was sweet. Like, unconscionably sweet to a girl he’d just met. He humored her light attempt at a joke over her situation, laughing and even agreeing with her. Aella resisted the urge to ‘aww’ at his adorableness. Until he said ‘all the time.’ What did that mean, exactly? That his body just refused to do as it was told, or that he was beat up so often- from various sources- that his body literally couldn’t do as it was asked. Why did that thought make a knot form in her stomach? She knew what he was, what he did with his life. He fought the ‘monsters;’ he killed supernaturals. Naturally, he would’ve been injured in this pursuit. Supers didn’t want to die more than any other variety of being, and they were well-equipped to fight back from the people that wished them ill. Of course he’d had the shit beaten out of him on more than a few occasions. It made her strangely… not protective, of course not, but sort of… possessive? She was supposed to eliminate the Noble twins. It would get her the peace and quiet from the devil that she desperately wanted. Nobody should mess with her targets but her. Okay, currently, she wasn’t really doing what she was supposed to.

Currently, she was firmly snuggled in the arms of a hunter that was going to have to die by her own two pretty, pale hands. Oh, the irony was just bleeding everywhere. To be helped by a hottie that she was going to have to get rid of. Mm. Mm-mm-mm. How was this faaaair?? He was too pretty to die. Except, he didn’t have to die for a while yet. She hadn’t even met Archer, which was still on her list of things to do. Meet, greet, get in close, screw them over, and then kill them. It was a long, drawn-out ordeal, yes. But that was the kind of thing the devil appreciated. The complex situations that created the most drama and pain and sinning. And while she hadn’t quite worked out the details yet, she knew that she could accomplish those things, given enough time. Couldn’t she? Yes, yes she could. The fact that she felt secure and small and wonderful right where she was was irrelevant. Hell, maybe she could use this to her advantage later. Spending more time with him wouldn’t be a bad thing. She’d eventually get to Archer that way. She’d learn about them both that way. What made them happy, what made them tick. Things like that. First though, she’d have to pretend that she didn’t enjoy the way being here made her feel. All warm and fuzzy. Weird.

But he was just so strong and wonderful. He beat up strangers for her, carried her around to the infirmary because of her stupid ankle, and was smart and sweet. He didn’t take ‘no’ for an answer either, which might’ve been stubborn, but she liked that in a guy. As long as it was a question meant to benefit her… There were understandable exceptions, of course. Brain, why must you confuse yourself like that? We already play dumb, no reason to actually be dumb/ She noted that he was entirely professional about the way he was carrying her. His warm hands didn’t stray to any sort of ‘inappropriate’ part of her, and the demon was uncertain whether she was grateful or disappointed. And the fact that she was torn was enough to bug her, but not overly much. Aella was something of a hedonist, pursuing what she wanted without considering the consequences. And August just kept making it easy on her, by being something she wanted, and playing along with her silliness. She could resist the giggle his words inspired, but she didn’t. Why bother? He was funny- it took a moment for him to relax enough to get there, but he really was funny- and the very least she could do was laugh with the genuine mirth she was feeling. It was only after the giggle that she realized he’d called her cute. He’d complimented her, legitimately. Though clearly, by the way his eyes widened just the tiniest bit- she could see that, close as she was- he hadn’t meant to.

How about that? He thought she was cute. She’d rather he think she was hot, sexy, delectable, delicious, but for now ‘cute’ would do. Now, the real question was, should she mention it? She lowered her eyes and looked at him from under her dark lashes, considering. No, probably shouldn’t. That would just make him uncomfortable. And he had to already be uncomfortable… what with carrying her cute self around ‘against her will,’ cough cough. Psh. There was nothing involuntary about this. She’d been surprised initially, but she’d quickly loosened into enjoyment. Why not revel in a thing that didn’t really happen to her all that often? Okay, she would’ve preferred he was just carrying her because he liked it, not because her ankle was screwed, but she’d take this little thing while she could get it from him. ’I suppose I should be grateful for the habit, huh? Saved me from having to figure things out myself. I do appreciate that, by the by.’ She grinned, just a touch saucy. ’You should let me know how I can return the favor sometime.’ She couldn’t quite tell what reaction her words inspired, but it wasn’t the lecherous one that most men might give her Snow-White-like self. The surprise- though she didn’t know why she was surprised, since he’d been nothing but a gentleman to her- let her waffle enough change topics. To the amusement park. Really original Aella. Pick your surroundings as conversation fodder. She shook her head at herself as he settled her onto the infirmary bed- he’d gracefully managed to open the door, navigate the lobby and the beds to fin the empty one he’d deposited her on- and couldn’t help but be impressed with him, and slightly saddened by his answer. Human lives were too short not to try and enjoy every moment. Especially in his case, as she was going to chop his lifeline incredibly short.

She nodded in understanding as the older woman inspected her ankle and questioned her, rubbing on the tender spots, searching for nonexistent breaks. Aella had been injured enough times to know what a break versus a sprain felt like. The woman put some ice on it- wrapping it in place- and told her to sit for a few while she checked on some other people- mostly those nauseous from the rides- which gave her the opportunity to answer August light-hearted question. She had to lie, but that really wasn’t a terribly big deal. She’d been doing it since she’d fallen all the way to Hell. ’Well, for your information, Mr. Knight, I was resting. Nice catch, there. I was feeling a touch dizzy, and then I was just people-watching. It’s nice. Makes me feel… I don’t know. Sort of disconnected from the constant struggle to keep up with the flow.’ Now, where had that come from? Something that wasn’t a total lie. Her stomach knotted. Unusual. For Aella to behave in anything more than a surface fashion with anybody. Even Joey, who she considered a friend, she was rarely real with. August- who she knew facts about that probably only he did- who didn’t know her at all, had gotten something out of her that most of nobody had. ’I- you know what, if you’re so interested in fun, we can actually attempt to enjoy the amusement park that we’re at. I mean, if you don’t mind helping me to the rides? I do love the roller coaster they have here…’ She shrugged gently, looking up at him with her big brown Bambi eyes, strangely hopeful that he would say yes. For reasons that had nothing to do with the stake out she was claiming.

[AUGUST GUNNER NOBLE]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #343434; padding:20px; border-top: 10px #af9390 solid; border-bottom: 10px #af9390 solid;] repair your broken wings ( WORDS ) 1086 ( TAGGED ) SMASHLEY ( OUTFIT ) hurr august had been in his fair share of fights, had his fair share of injuries, but when he said how he knew how it felt with your body didn't cooperate . . . he wasn't talking about any physical injury he'd ever had. in fact, he'd only ever not had control over his body from something physical when there was some sort of drug in his system, but that was another story. no, what he was referring to was his tendency of him to have panic attacks. no matter what injury august had ever had, nothing was worse to him than panic attacks. not being able to breath, feeling like you're choking and the whole world was collapsing - that was the worst. and he couldn't control it, couldn't control himself, and that was what he hated about them. holding aella like this, august had no clue as to what she was planning. hell, he had no idea that there were even people after him and his brother. sure, the twins had talked about what they would do if they were the ones being hunted, and they came up with a make - shift way of finding out if anyone was after them, but they never got a hint that someone was after them. so they continued living as if no one was after them; then again, they couldn't really afford to live much differently. the twins were dirt poor, living in a shabby apartment and living off what little was left of their adoptive parents' insurance money. it wasn't a good living by any standard, but hunting took all of their time. they couldn't stop and get real jobs, though august was considering doing that for a while so he could actually eat. calling aella cute had been a complete slip of the tongue. yes, he did find her cute and attractive, but he was august noble . . . he didn't go around and flirt with girls, calling them cute. hell, he couldn't even get laid until he just got wasted and did it with a stranger. being a hunter hadn't left him - or archer, for that matter - much time for social lives, let alone girlfriends. or boyfriends, if that was what archer was into; they didn't talk about relationships much, so august had no idea if they were that weird one - straight - one - gay twin set or not. he figured not, since he'd seen archer with girls, but he knew archer would do that just to not be laughed at by august. it was just one of those things he knew, as his twin. plus, getting a girlfriend would mean less time hunting together, and although archer could probably do well on his own, august knew he would be hopeless without archer. the hunter listened to what she had to say, a small smile forming on his lips. he liked this girl. not in a creepy, wanting to stalk her way, but in that way that he could get used to talking to her. he really didn't have any girls in his life whatsoever - except for shae now, though he didn't know how long that was going to last - so he figured that having someone like her around could be a good thing. maybe if he introduced her to archer, the other twin would get the stick out of his ass. then again, that wasn't very likely. in any case, august didn't get any real dirty thoughts from what she said; he just didn't really think like that. " return the favor, hm? maybe before you take your leave, you can give me your number and i'll get back to you on that favor? " he suggested, hoping she wouldn't get the creeps or just . . . well, flat out say no. he really didn't have some scheme to get in her pants, just wanted someone that wasn't archer to hang around. watching the way the nurse wrapped up aella's ankle, august thought of how many times he and his twin had had to do something like that all by themselves. this nurse was lucky, having all the equipment she needed, whereas the twins usually weren't as lucky. august remembered having to put some dead chick's frozen leg on his ankle to keep his own swelling down, then having to snap one of his arrows as a split for archer. yeah . . . they usually came prepared to kill anything, not to fix themselves up. the good part about that, though, was that they both learned how to at least get temporary solutions to a wide variety of injuries. august could think of fifteen other ways to fix up her ankle . . . but he supposed the medical professional probably knew what was best. he smiled a bit to himself, not caring how stupid he probably looked. " dizzy? mighta been dehydrated or hungry, so you should probably eat or drink something before you head out again. but people watching is always something that's . . . entertaining, to say the least. see anything interesting before that rude man? " he questioned, genuinely interested. august really did enjoy people - watching; he always joked with archer that the reason they enjoyed it was because they could see a lot better than most people would. some of the things they saw, though . . . the thought nearly made him shiver. some things were better left unseen, let's just leave it at that. did . . . did he hear her right? did she just? yes she did. august's mind blanked a bit - he was really confused as to what was going on and what it all meant or even could mean - as he thought it over. he hesitated for a minute - getting over some shock, really - before replying. " i wouldn't mind, not at all. i mean, i'd love to. wait. i mean. okay, i'd love to actually enjoy the amusement park. i wouldn't mind helping you onto rides. " that made sense now, right? august hoped so. " is the roller coaster your favorite? cause, y'know, if we convince them to give you a wheelchair or threaten to call a lawyer to sue . . . we might be able to cut the line a few times for it, " he suggested with a somewhat wicked grin. august didn't really know what was going on with him, but he could get used to this. not late nope <3

table by CALIFORNIA DREAMING of CAUTION 2.0, lyrics by maroon 5

[AELLA SHYANNE MUNROE]

Oh, was she the biggest sucker on the planet, or what? Okay, no, probably not, but she felt like it. Deluding herself into thinking that she only wanted August left alone because he was hers to dismiss or dispatch as she saw fit. Truthfully, she’d seen him as an impressive man since the day she’d first come across the knowledge of him and his brother. Originally, she’d just been… curious. It wasn’t until later that she’d come up with the whole ‘elimination’ plan. At first, she’d just wanted to know about him. Something… oh, fer fuck’s sake, what was she thinking now? About the past? Why? It didn’t matter. She knew what she had to do now, knew what her goal was. Being in his presence shouldn’t make her so quick to forget that. The demon had killed quite a few people in her time, to be perfectly honest. It was just… it was different. She knew him, knew August, in a way most people didn’t. She probably knew a few things about that man that only, say, Archer did. Somehow, it was harder to kill someone like him after she’d learned so much about him. And was now actually meeting him. But wasn’t that part of the plan, Aella? Get in close and then sucker punch him where it hurt most? Seemed almost unreasonably cruel now, now that she’d had his voice in her ears, his hands on her body.

Oh, come on now, stoppit. That was just the way it had to be. No matter how wonderful and sweet he was being to her now. No matter that he’d offered to help her when he didn’t even know her. Nope. And that he was actually kinda charming. Uuuugh. So contradictory, he was being, to her goal. Except… not really. He was being extremely conducive to her end-game, truth be told. Taking her in like this, totally unsuspecting. It almost wasn’t fair, even though she didn’t consider herself ready for the actually interactions with him and Archer yet. But, time waited for no one, and this was going to just have to be the time. She doubted she’d get another great opportunity like this one. So she’d embrace it with open arms instead. Yep. And, it seemed, flirt her butt off. Which he rolled with! He even asked for her phone number, as if he wanted to see her again. She couldn’t help the giant smile that lit up her whole face, turning her stomach into butterflies and goo. That was certainly unexpected, but totally welcome. Aella nodded quickly, feeling a bit eager. (In a way that had nothing to do with the fact that he was playing into her trap, and more to do with the fact that a pretty man was paying her attention. Crap.)

’Absolutely August. Um… I don’t have any paper, but if you wanna, like, fish your phone out, I could just program it in there. Maybe under ‘cutie…’’ Her grin was teasing and playful as he continued his trek to the infirmary, and she kept hoping it would last longer, even though she knew better. She didn’t know what giving him her number would lead to, maybe a couple texting or phone conversations that would make him realize what a ditz she was, and not wanna hang out with her anymore, but she would try her damnedest to make sure that wasn’t the case. ’Favor’s got limits though, ya know. Can’t ask me to kill anybody or go to prison. Anything else, pretty open.’ The ebony-haired demon winked, joking with him. They both knew he didn’t need her to kill anybody. If he wanted that done, he could do it himself… yep. And well, too. Sometimes, it scared her, how adept he was, for a human. But he paired that skill at killing with an equal skill at caring. He just seemed to care about her, without her even doing anything particularly remarkable to inspire it. August asked about what had gotten her butt knocked off the bench in the first place, even. And instead of catching onto some other but of her sentences, he grabbed onto the part where she’d been ‘dizzy.’ The tone he used was concerned and practical, genuine. Her brow scrunched and she chuckled.

’I know that on a surface level, smarty-pants, but I get distracted sometimes. Forget.’ Her shrug was small and eloquent, the forgetfulness inherent to her ditzy persona giving her an out. An out for the lie. Some part of her actually felt guilty about lying to him. How weird was that? It was still an easy thing to do, a practiced habit, but she actually felt some small remorse for it. Odd. Didn’t stop her though. ’As for interesting people… Hmm. Ever heard that ‘opposites attract’ saying? Saw a couple that basically personified that. Wanted to take a picture, even. Um, couple of kids being stupid… really hot brunette guy who ended up carrying me…’ She trailed off, waiting for him to get that she was talking about him again, complimenting him. Aella meant what she said though. August was… unf. Yeah, that was a pretty good descriptive word, right? He was a good distraction, good company, while the woman bound up her ankle for a bit. Honestly, she’d kind of expected him to drop her off and leave, but this was a pleasant surprise. The lady left, and she gestured to the seat next to her, waiting for the ice and her stronger disposition to work its magic. While she waited, she kinda asked him out. Kinda… and he floundered, just for a second, with his response. She just smiled the whole time, waiting for him to finish, and giggling at the end.

’Thanks, handsome. For the waiting and the assist. And I don’t know… roller coaster or water slide. You have a favorite? And I’d be willing to try that… since I’m pretty sure it was a guard that knocked me flat.’

[AUGUST GUNNER NOBLE]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 400px; background-color: #343434; padding:20px; border-top: 10px #af9390 solid; border-bottom: 10px #af9390 solid;] repair your broken wings ( WORDS ) 1212 ( TAGGED ) CINNAMON GLAZE ( OUTFIT ) hurr for being a pretty well - trained hunter, august still had his weaknesses. one of those was weak connections. the only person he really had connections to was archer, and lord knows that boy didn't really have the people skills to set up an intricate network for information. because they lacked that, august had no idea that the woman he was helping had been getting information on him. in fact, he didn't even know that he was being ' hunted ' in any sort of way. sure, he figured there were people out there that wanted to kill him, but he sincerely doubted that they'd go to great lengths to find out a lot about him. in the hunter's mind, he wasn't really worth jumping through loops, especially just to kill. he figured that if anyone was after him, they would just show up in front of him and try to kill him. august figured she wouldn't have any paper, so after making sure she was settled, he pulled his phone out. it wasn't a very nice phone - definitely not a smart phone - but it worked, and that was what counted. it made calls, it sent texts. that was all august ever needed in a phone, though he was kind of jealous of people that had smart phones. he probably would have gotten one by now just to test it out, but the problem was the same one he always had: money. he and archer were pretty damn poor, especially with the inheritance money from their parents running low. they were already starting to ration their food and everything, so they couldn't afford to splurge on cool new phones . . . especially when they tended to get destroyed on the job. in any case, august unlocked the phone and opened up the new contact page before handing it to her. " you can put yourself under anything you'd like. you should send yourself a text from my phone so you got my number, too, " he replied with a smile. it didn't occur to the hunter that she could be putting in a fake number like all the movies had girls do. well, if she was, he supposed it would be pretty obvious when she texted the number and some awkward, confused person on the other side was wondering what was up. hearing what she said about limits, august couldn't help but let out a bit of a laugh. he couldn't ask her to kill anyone for her? oh, if only she knew . . . but she did know; august was the oblivious one. " no killing? darn. luckily i've got a guy for that already. " to most people, this would come off as an obvious flirting joke. he would just be a guy trying to be funny for a girl. both august and aella knew that it wasn't a joke, though; he was dead serious. he both had a guy to kill for him and was the guy. august knew that archer would kill for him without a second thought, just as august would do for him. they were all each other had, until archer started sneaking out to see someone else. god, that made it sound like archer was cheating on him or something, that they were . . . ew. august only had his brother, though - his brother was what made him strong. and having archer start spending his time with someone else, too, felt like he was cheating, as odd as it sounded. " you should have some water before we leave here. want me to get you some? " august didn't wait for a response before he got up and found those giant tanks of water, filling a dixie cup with the liquid. he came back and handed it to aella, a small smile on his lips. he was pretty used to taking care of people, having always been the one to clean up archer's mess both at home and on the job. he was the one that was better at first aid and the like; archer was better at the execution of plans, at traps, at actually killing. sometimes august felt like his side kick, like the robin to his batman, but he was surprisingly okay with that. archer never acted like august was less than him, and they owed each other their lives so much that they lost count after the twentieth save . . . it was safe to say that august knew how to take care of people, even if said people were extremely attractive women. wait, what? the hunter listened to aella as she explained what she saw, smiling a bit. " they personified ' opposites attract? ' how's that? " august almost didn't catch that the hot brunette guy was him. the only reason he got it was because she added that he carried her away; if that wasn't obvious, nothing was. he smiled awkwardly, obviously flustered at that. one could say he was blushing a little, but then that one should remember he's a trained killer. " hot? that's a new one . . . uh. thank you. you're, uh. pretty attractive yourself. " if there was anyone more awkward at direct flirting than august, i sincerely pity that person. the hunter inwardly kicked himself for being such a freaking idiot, but he at least managed to look relatively calm on the outside. the male grinned. " wait here, then. i'll go see if i can convince them to give us some fast passes or whatever they're called here. things to cut the line. " august made his way to the nurse and started talking to her. after a moment she directed him to someone in another room. he argued with the person for a few minutes; he wanted some type of compensation for a guard just attacking aella, and also threatened to let the news know of the little incident. the man said that since august had attacked the man, too, it was all settled - but was it really? august didn't give in until he was given a handicap pass that would let them at least beat most of the lines, he made his way back to aella, grinning, and handed her the handicap pass. " so, roller coaster or water ride first? oh! and you can have a wheelchair or crutches if you want. i can help you get around if you want a wheelchair. " this was just like august, going from awkward to relatively normal in a matter of seconds. he was still a bit fidgety, but he could at least manage to put that behind him to get aella set up to go have some fun. after all, the point of the day was to forget about archer, right? that was exactly what he was going to do. hell, maybe something else good will come out of today - he'll be able to socialize with someone outside of his family. so far, trying to be like a normal person was failing, but around aella, he was a little more normal . . . just a little. the male waited for aella to say what she wanted to do, helping with anything he could. i always think "oh i can't match her count crap" and then this happens

table by CALIFORNIA DREAMING of CAUTION 2.0, lyrics by maroon 5

[AELLA SHYANNE MUNROE]

If only Aella could just take a peek into August’s mind. She woulda killed for that, maybe. Well, prolly not. But she would do a great many things for the kind of knowledge she could glean that way. Then she wouldn’t have to do all this dancing around, trying to figure out if she was playing this correctly. Come on, like you wouldn’t do some pretty fantastic shit if you could know what the person across from you was thinking? You totally would. Lots of people did, actually, selling their souls for the ability. As well as immortality and eternal youth. But most of those people didn’t realize what a soul was actually worth. Hell, even as a minion of the underworld, Aella still didn’t know why the devil wanted to have souls so badly, or what one even was. But she did know that August’s was highly coveted, and the more miserable she could get that soul before she gave it over into the hands of the devil, the more kudo points she’d get. So yeah, the ability to read his mind would’ve come in super handy at the moment, when she was trying to gauge his reactions to her and her comments. So far, so good. But was that real?

Actually, probably. August seemed to have a hard time lying. Like, he was just honest by nature. She couldn’t tell ya why that was, or what that was about, but when a lie tripped its way out of his mouth, one could pretty much always tell that that was what had just happened. He’d lied, and he wasn’t exactly comfortable with it. Aella, on the other hand, totally cool with lying. It was harder to do with August with most- he was such a good, sweet person to her that she just felt bad about it- but she still managed just fine. Some of her lying had lent itself to her actually having a continued conversation and interaction with the man, so she really didn’t feel too terrible about it. She was both accomplishing her goal and having fun with a cute, cough, stranger. Who wanted her phone number. And the sheer compliment of such a thing made the demon grin, perhaps a little more happy than she shoulda been with her intended victim wanting to be in contact with her… but who cared? Things were progressing really well, and for now, she was playing along, slipping into the whole ‘damsel in distress’ role and rolling with it. She could use all this later, but for now, she’d just have fun. And absolutely program his phone with her number under ‘Cutie.’ She hadn’t been kidding. Her swift fingers flew over his- admittedly older- phone keys, happily humming to herself. She had to admit though, she missed, almost instantly, being nestled in his arms. Some dim part of her brain had wanted him to sit down and hold her like that, ad infinitum… Or lie down. Whichever. An odd thought to have, but that was her body talking, not her brain. Nope. Certainly not. Her mind was focused on doing as he’d asked, texting her own phone, and using the message, ‘texting the theme park cutie! XD’ to give herself his number.

Now, she was happy about this. Really, she was. Perhaps a little too much, but that wasn’t the point right now. The point now, was etiquette. What the hell was she supposed to do with it? Wait? Let him text her first? Or blow up his phone? Or… she’d never mixed this whole ‘business with pleasure’ thing. Another thing, she wasn’t even sure that’s what she was doing. Ya know? Like… she was still claiming she was being entirely covert with this whole thing, that her whole point was to use whatever she learned today to hurt him and off him later… So did that technically count as mixing them? Or just an undercover operation? Clearly, the little airhead (who wasn’t really so dumb) just wasn’t made to do this kind of subtle crap. She could lie her ass off, but that didn’t mean she had her priorities straight. Especially, it seemed, where August was concerned. She was offering him favors and shit, even. Open-ended favors. Was that wise? To be perfectly honest, she was fairly certain that he would never take her up on it. But handing out IOUs just wasn’t a good idea for a demon. And Aella (obviously) didn’t care for being in people’s debt. At least she put some parameters on the favor. Which he circumvented nicely, making her chuckle, because she knew the truth of the comeback. Interesting, that… he hadn’t yet lied to her. Told the truth in ways that seemed like teasing, but no lies. She didn’t know how she felt about that, considering she’d lied to him, a bunch of times already. About why she was there, how she’d been feeling… like the dizzy thing. She wasn’t dizzy at all, and hadn’t been, yet there he was, off to get her some water, handing it to her with a face that, while sweet- pretty much left no room for argument.

So she took the little paper cup with a smile and a little ‘thanks, handsome,’ and downed it in a series of sips and swallows, making it last a little while, as they kept talking about what she’d been doing, lies continuing to roll off her tongue. What else could she do at that point? Tell him the truth? PSH. Not. Keep making shit up, that was the ticket. ’Tall, short. Fat, skinny. Dark, light. Wicked, good. But they were holding hands, happy as clams. It was weird as well as being cute,’ she said with a little shrug, finishing off her little cup of water, watching him catch her comment on his hotness, chuckling to herself. His return was charming, really. No way she was gonna let it sit there. Of course not, make August even more awkward than he already felt. ’’Pretty attractive,’ huh? Damn… gotta work on my looks then… Maybe hit the gym some more, wear less clothing… what do you think?’ Yes, tease him. She liked it. A lot. He reacted well- she was so focused on him, she could tell- making her grin, before he scampered- okay, not really, she was being silly- off to argue with some people in charge, making sure she was treated very well for her baseless attack by an employee. A few minutes later, he was back with a little handicap pass, making her burst out in giggles, impressed that he’d actually pulled it off.

’, that is awesome. You are awesome.’ She shook her head, still giggling, before leaning over to check her ankle. ’I don’t actually think I need either… if you just wanna help me? I’m pretty sure I can manage. Besides, not like that thing says what kind of disability I have…’ Her voice trailed off, evidently happy to let people think whatever they wanted, long as she still got her way with him… erm. Actually… there was supposed to be a comma in that thought, right?