InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "Bad cop, no donut!"

Bran Wilder {The Phantom} (lemortvivant) wrote in bellumlogs,
@ 2010-07-15 01:08:00

Entry tags:

glinda, phantom of the opera

Who: Bran and Gabby
What: A spontaneous visit + dinner
Where: D3
When: Let's backdate this to Monday, about 5:30-ish
Warnings: None at present

Even though Gabby had been more tolerable than expected, Bran hadn't really thought about her offer of dinner very much during the next couple of weeks. It wasn't that he was particularly busy, because it wasn't like he had an actual job or anything, but he did need to get money somehow and most of his time was spent... exploring other options through which he could obtain money. Some might say he was breaking the law, but he liked to think of it as doing what needed to be done. Besides, he never took anything from people who didn't have enough of their own - hell, he was like a modern-day antisocial Robin Hood.

The idea came to him randomly, really. Bran was beginning to realize that he really had no friends or even acquaintances in the building whatsoever - he and Lotte were something weird and awkward, certainly not friends, and he only knew a few others in passing. Could it really hurt to play nice for a bit and try to get in a few good books?

He decided the answer was no, and it was that combined with a building frustration that led him to decide to take up Gabby on her dinner offer without prior notice. Fuck it, right?

Which was why he headed up to the deluxe floor that evening, a bottle of acquired (aka stolen) wine in hand (but at least it was expensive, which made up for how it got into his possession) and a winning smile on his face. He was sick of feeling like a particularly homely dog that had attacked someone and subsequently went around with its tail between its legs. Despite her overt cheeriness and habit of being a little too physical, at least Gabby treated him like a human being. Stopping outside D3, he raised his hand and beat out a little percussion of knocks on the wood.

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-15 11:38 am UTC (link)

Bran picked a good time to show up randomly! Gabby was in the process of reading through her spellbooks, organizing her various charms and crystals, and burning some dragon's blood incense, which was traditionally used for love, protection, and sexual potency. The scent was pleasant, very warm and spicy, and she only was burning a bit so it wasn't overpowering. When she heard the knocks, she was surprised. Who would be her first visitor? No one had bothered, really! Perhaps it was some other resident come to fulfill their asshole quota of the day, and she wouldn't feel bad about kicking them out.

But no, when she checked through the peephole and saw it was Dark and Mysterious Raven she was quite pleased! Taking a moment to fix her hair, she then opened the door and flashed a brilliant smile at him.

"Hi handsome," she drawled, accented southern hospitality and all, the same accent that could charm the ~~pants~~ morning dew right off the honeysuckle. Then she waved him in so he wouldn't have to stand in the doorway. "I'm so glad you came over! I was just about to start dinner too and - oh, you brought wine!" Gabby had since given up alcohol, but it would be rude to refuse when he went to all the trouble of procuring such a wonderful bottle. Therefore, a glass or two wouldn't hurt.

She was wearing a retro-inspired frock since she had run some errands earlier (and it was much too hot to run around in jeans) but was lacking silver shoes, and was a bit shorter than her guest. So she raised herself up on her toes and gave Bran a kiss on the cheek before flitting off to the living room to put all of her spellbooks and doodads away so he didn't think he walked onto the set of The Craft or anything.

"Sorry, I was just caught up in the middle of something, but you have my full attention now," Gabby chirped as she put crystals back into their drawstring bags and closed the books, sliding them on a shelf on the end table.

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lemortvivant
2010-07-16 06:45 am UTC (link)

Bran didn't allow himself time to consider what he was doing, since the whole point of being impulsive was to avoid all that over-thinking and worrying nonsense that so many people did. Either his patience was growing or he'd just stopped caring somewhere along the way, because he didn't even blink at being called handsome. What once would have made him uncomfortable was now just a word, and it was a compliment, wasn't it? So there was really no reason to get disgruntled over it.

"I know it's a little unexpected, but I was hoping your offer for dinner was still valid." He spoke with the ease of knowing that it did, and cast an appraising look around. Her apartment was nice, obviously - it was a deluxe, after all - although it was a little too white and airy for his tastes. The kiss was a little unexpected but he took it in stride, setting the wine down on the nearest available surface. He was faintly curious as to what she'd been doing beforehand, and there was a spicy sort of scent in the air that he found he actually rather liked. "Oh, I'm not intruding, am I?" He raised his eyebrows almost apologetically, even though he doubted she was annoyed by his presence.

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-16 10:03 am UTC (link)

"Nope, you're fine," Gabby replied easily. "Make yourself at home. Anytime is a good time for Dark and Mysterious Raven." She went into the kitchen, opening the cabinet to pull down two wine glasses, then rummaged in one of the drawers for a bottle opener. "Cooking with another person is more fun, as most things are," she winked, and with a slight popping sound, the cork was removed from the bottle. "And cooking while drinking always adds to the fun too. Just don't misjudge and chop a finger off. Alright, darling! What are you in the mood for? Any particular likes or dislikes or allergies?"

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lemortvivant
2010-07-16 05:47 pm UTC (link)

The nickname might need a little tweaking in the future, but for now there were far worse possibilities that came to mind - most making some sort of reference to the Phantom - so he figured he shouldn't push his luck just yet. "That might be why I've never had very much luck with cooking in the past. I always tried tackling it on my own." No need to mention that his lack of patience also had something to do with it. "But I'll do my damnedest to keep all my fingers intact."

Bran took the liberty of pouring the wine, shaking his head. "No allergies to speak of - and I'm not really picky food-wise, either."

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-16 06:21 pm UTC (link)

Gabby laughed a little, going to the sink to wash her hands. She opened the fridge and, after some thought, procured a few items for Bran to work his previously untapped cooking skills on. "Good, yes, let's keep all fingers and other body parts intact. You never know when you might need them," she said, arranging the vegetables - shitake mushrooms, shallot, and scallions - on the cutting board, then handed him the knife. "Can you handle chopping these? I'll give you some tofu when you're done there, and I'll work on the sauce. Does pad Thai sound okay?" she asked, taking a sip of wine. It was one of her favorite dishes, and she had picked up a recipe for vegetarian pad Thai while overseas. Plus, she had some spring rolls she made earlier, that were sitting pretty in a Tupperware container in the fridge, so this dinner would be a good time to heat them up. Delish!

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lemortvivant
2010-07-17 03:06 am UTC (link)

His own fridge was pathetic in comparison to Gabby's, but living on a diet of frozen food and take-out didn't really require a lot of fresh food. Bran didn't even know what the little reddish things were, but then again you didn't need to be able to name a food to cut it into little pieces. "I can handle chopping up some vegetables, don't worry." There were some people who might have thought she was an idiot for giving him a knife, but despite what Lotte might have believed, he wasn't that untrustworthy.

He recognized pad Thai, at least, having ordered it a few times for dinner. "Sounds great, actually." He took a sip of wine before beginning to chop the mushrooms first, clearly keeping the blade away from his fingers.

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-17 03:23 am UTC (link)

Well, goodness! It's not as if Gabby expected D&M Raven to stab her right here in her own kitchen - that was just silly. Plus, it would mean her magic failed and her magic never did. Surprisingly (or not), she had a knack for witchcraft. "Knife skills are a very important part of the cooking process," she laughed, mixing the sauce ingredients together for boiling. "Pretty soon you'll learn how to Julienne things with the best of them. Though if I wasn't writing a novel, I would open my own bakery. Clearly." Or become a famous makeup artist but the bakery appealed to her sweet tooth more!

Sighing, she bent down to retrieve her wok from the bottom cabinet. "Or I could stay here and be perplexed a lot. I was actually quite disappointed by the lack of...things during the last full moon. Were you?" She just wanted to know who her fucking fable was, if she even had one, so she could move on with her life!

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lemortvivant
2010-07-17 07:30 am UTC (link)

Oh, he had knife skills - just not in the cooking sense. When one spent a good chunk of time with a gypsy circus, well, it was impossible to not learn a few things out of necessity as well as pure curiosity. "I remember you mentioned a novel in your introduction post," he commented idly, not looking up from his chopping-up-vegetables task. "Can I ask what it's about?"

Bran let out a short chuckle, since he'd been a mixture of disappointed and relieved after the usual full moon transformation failed to occur. On the one hand he hadn't needed to worry about keeping Erik locked up, but on the other he felt bad for his tale. One night a month was the only freedom he had, and somehow it didn't seem right to deprive him of that, even if he was supposed to be a fictional character. "I wouldn't quite say I was disappointed, no. Erik can be quite a handful sometimes, so it was a nice break from having to worry about him. But I can see why you'd be disappointed, not knowing your fable and all."

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-17 02:23 pm UTC (link)

"No, you can't ask," Gabby deadpanned, then snickered to reveal that she was clearly teasing. "Of course! It's about a southern girl exploring her roots and trying to reconcile good old fashioned southern gentility with the harshness of today's society, so it's sort of a 'coming of age' type of thing. Probably not something you'd pick up and read, but maybe I'll make it on Oprah's Book Club list," she joked as she stirred the sauce, in a pot on the stove.

At the mention of Erik, she smiled. "I'm sure he's an interesting one to have in your head. Or however it works. Though yes, I am rather curious about...mine." It was still a strange idea to wrap her mind around, but she was trying to be prepared regardless. "Hopefully it won't be one your Erik can't stand. And someone useful? I'd like it to be a useful fable." Princesses were all fine and good, but not exactly viewed as capable.

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lemortvivant
2010-07-18 02:31 am UTC (link)

He regarded her with raised eyebrows for a moment before laughing, since he hadn't pegged her as the type to become all defensive over a novel. Some people were probably secretive about their ideas or whatever - but if she'd wanted to keep it a secret, then she never would have mentioned the book in the first place. Gabby was right in the assumption that it wasn't something he'd read, but he tried to look at least marginally interested. "Maybe. It sounds like the sort of plot that Oprah would like - you'll be set for life if she asks you on her show."

Clearly she wasn't quite aware of how the fables worked, but he didn't feel like explaining it all over again. Nor did he feel like pointing out that Erik couldn't stand anyone, save for a few select people. "Useful fables are a good thing to have. Erik isn't exactly popular, but at least he can handle himself if the need arises." He finished chopping up one pile of vegetables and moved onto another. "Do you have any ideas about what yours might be? Or any preferences?"

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-18 02:42 am UTC (link)

"We'll see! I do editing work too - I'm sort of a stickler for grammar and punctuation, so it's a good job for me - but I really enjoy writing," Gabby said, reaching for her wine glass as she stirred for a moment, then went to pull out the proper noodles from the cabinet. Perhaps she'd have to consider giving up the 'no alcohol' rule while living in Bellum. Yeesh. "I really don't know who mine could be," she confessed. "Is there a way to tell?" Gabby couldn't fathom what that might be. "Did you know who yours was, before he showed up?"

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lemortvivant
2010-07-18 03:56 am UTC (link)

"Being a stickler for grammar and punctuation is a very good thing. It's unbelievable how many people lack basic grammar skills, especially people who write books. I've read a few novels in my time that had some mistakes, but I have a feeling yours won't be anything like that." Bran didn't expect a lot from humanity, but really - being able to form a coherent paragraph wasn't rocket science. Teenagers in particular annoyed him, since most of them seemed to enjoy butchering the English language with their ridiculous slang or whatever it was.

"Sometimes there are similarities. Erik and I are both musicians, for example." He paused, pulling a face. "Honestly? I went to see a fortune teller named Katya - she used to live here, but she moved out. She could... see things that were pretty accurate, and she hinted at who I might be. I didn't believe it until it actually happened, of course."

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-18 04:14 am UTC (link)

The noodles had to soak, and by the time everything was chopped and ready to cook they would be set too, so Gabby took care of that and then made sure to preheat the oven to warm up spring rolls. No one likes putting junk into an oven without preheating it! "No, never!" she gasped at the idea of mistakes in her novel. "I'm too much of a perfectionist for that. Surely you understand."

She thought about what he said as she stirred the sauce once more, turning the heat down a bit. "Similarities? That makes sense. I guess fortune tellers around here would be pretty accurate too. I mean, I'm - " She froze, eyes widening as she had a horrible thought. All of those spells, the things she had been studying so intently ever since visiting Thailand? What if she was just some gnarled, revolting witch? Like the one from Hansel and Gretel who are children?! Oh, that would be awful.

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lemortvivant
2010-07-18 10:23 pm UTC (link)

He found a steady rhythm to his chopping, easily able to avoid cutting himself and carry on a conversation at the same time. Maybe he was getting the hang of this kitchen thing after all. "Oh, definitely. I'm a bit of a perfectionist myself, actually."

Bran raised his eyebrows at her expression. "Something wrong?" Either the had a problem with fortune tellers or she'd remembered something that related to a fable, although he had a hunch it was the latter.

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-18 10:36 pm UTC (link)

"Nothing, I just...well, I'm not really a musician. I can appreciate the art of music but there's not much there and, well, it'd be too much of a coincidence to have a writer fable, wouldn't it?" She was babbling, she knew that. But goodness gracious! Why hadn't she just taken up wind surfing or something? "I'm a witch," she groaned, chugging her wine down to the very last drop in the glass. "I'm the witch who ate Hansel and Gretel."

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lemortvivant
2010-07-19 04:22 am UTC (link)

He paused, resting the knife blade gently against the cutting board. Clearly something had caught her off guard, and he'd bet his life on 'sudden revelation'. Really, though, how bad could her fable be? So far Gabby seemed to be a regular girl who liked cooking and was currently writing a novel. Did she think she was some kind of Austen character or something?

Bran couldn't hide his surprise when she announced she was a witch. "What?" He was very close to laughing in disbelief, because the last fable he would have guessed was that kind of witch. "What makes you think your tale happens to be a cannibalistic witch?"

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-19 04:36 am UTC (link)

Gabby straightened up a bit, thinking over what she would say next. "If I show you something..." she started, looking at Bran, square in the eye. She liked him - really, she did. A lot more than she liked anyone else she had met so far. "Do you promise not to tell anyone else?" Mostly because she didn't really have a grasp on it yet, and would hate to be held accountable for false advertising if the rumors were blabbed.

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lemortvivant
2010-07-19 07:07 am UTC (link)

Contrary to popular belief, Bran could be trustworthy when he wanted to be. Even though he wasn't usually entrusted with the secrets of others, on the rare occasion that he was, he judged whether they were worth keeping on a case-to-case basis. But when he deemed someone worthy, then nothing on earth or even beyond could persuade him to betray them.

Even though he had no idea why, he didn't mind Gabby. She'd initially struck him as a spoiled airhead over the forums, but in person he realized that - to his surprise - he'd misjudged her. Thus he had no reason to tell anyone else whatever she was about to divulge, and honestly, he didn't want to tell anyone in the first place. "I won't tell anyone. I take secrets very seriously, because I know what it's like to have someone reveal things they said they wouldn't." A frown passed over his features, but it was gone before it even had a chance to form; replaced by the most reassuring smile he could muster. "What is it?"

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-19 03:09 pm UTC (link)

Gabby thought she noticed a change - a flicker of disappointment at the mention of people revealing things they shouldn't. She smiled a little too, reaching up to cup his face with one hand, patting his cheek lightly, then she dropped her hand and put both of them together.

"Well, it's..." She tried to think of some way to describe it. "Here, just try and cut this apple. I'll show you with this." Gabby pulled one from the basket on the counter, setting it down on the surface. She couldn't really practice on Bran; that would not be nice.

And then she closed her eyes. She had read about grounding, what that meant - this kept a sorceress from becoming entirely too mentally scattered, flighty, or uneasy. Centering prevented one from being distracted by outside forces; it was the concept she had the most trouble with, simply because centering required that you know who you are.

As if it were that easy.

For this to work, she had to feel connected with the earth, and believe that nothing could disturb the roots of her strength. Creating a shield was no small task but now was a good a time as any to practice. Most likely, she would need one in this place - not just a shield from physical harm but from mental negativity as well.

The ball of light first formed in between the middle of both of her hands; she held it there gently, murmuring a few words with her eyes closed. Biting her lip in concentration, she opened her eyes then stretched the shield furiously and, like a champion javelin thrower, flung her creation out into the open space of the kitchen, where it hovered like a mushroom cloud of liquid tungsten - unbreakable, even against bullets and blades. She kept concentrating, despite her ever-rising blood pressure and the gigantic brick in her stomach. Sweat beaded on her forehead, and ran cold down the back of her neck.

The invisible shield covered the area she had projected it onto and when he would try to cut the apple (she imagined it as a person, that helped make it less silly) all that would happen would be that the blade would miss; somehow it would end up on either side of the object, despite the fact that it should have sliced into the center.

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lemortvivant
2010-07-19 07:17 pm UTC (link)

Bran was expecting some kind of spell, since she must have had some reason to believe she was a witch. The only problem was there were so many versions and representations of witches that he had no idea which one she might be. They seemed to get less and less sinister as time passed - witches in the eighteenth century didn't quite measure up to the Wicked Witch of the West, after all - but somehow he couldn't see Gabby as some kind of evil, cackling spell-caster.

He didn't quite understand why she wanted him to cut the apple, but he shrugged and picked up the knife regardless. He raised his hand over the apple, watching with raised eyebrows as a ball of light appeared out of nowhere between her hands. Although he knew people had abilities, this was something completely new. It was hard to keep from staring at the light-thing hovering in the middle of the kitchen, but he regained his wits just in time to realize he was supposed to be cutting the fruit. He brought the knife down directly through the center, but instead of slicing through the blade ended up on the right side of the apple, leaving it unmarked.

He tried again, with the same result. "Wow." So she could cast... what, shield spells? That was a useful ability. "That's impressive, not to mention useful."

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-19 07:30 pm UTC (link)

Useful and impressive, it may have been both things - but it all seriously drained Gabby, and she let the invisible shield disintegrate as her bones began to feel like they were turning to liquid. She grabbed Bran's shoulders to steady herself so she didn't collapse. "I'm still working on it," she gasped. "Trying to hold it longer, you know? But it's difficult."

She blew a piece of hair off of her forehead. "Anyway. That's what I do in my spare time. I've had a lot of it lately."

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lemortvivant
2010-07-19 09:59 pm UTC (link)

He was too caught up in the awe of seeing what she could do to notice how much it had taken out of her, at least until she grabbed his shoulders. "Are you okay?" Now it was evident that a supreme effort was required to keep up the shield, and since he couldn't just let her fall he let his arms go around her waist to keep her steady. "Yeah, it doesn't look very easy. Just don't push yourself too hard." At least his ability didn't require too much effort - he'd felt a little tired after calming down the mob, and his throat felt raw, but that was about it.

"That's one hell of a hobby." Bran grinned, and he thought about how she'd probably never have to worry during the full moon if she managed to get a better handle on it. "If you can cast a shield spell, though, I think it makes you a good witch - not one who eats children."

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-19 10:16 pm UTC (link)

"I'm okay," Gabby promised as she moved her arms to drape them around his neck. "Is there such thing as a good witch?" she asked and, going by history, it didn't seem to be a notion that many people believed. Even just the word 'witchcraft' tended to freak everyone out, whether it be black or white magic. "But thanks. If you ever need one..." She rose herself up on her toes, grinning as her nose touched the tip of his. "I've got your back, darling."

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lemortvivant
2010-07-20 03:29 am UTC (link)

Suddenly she'd gotten very close, which hadn't been his intention whatsoever, but at least she didn't flinch or look terrified when Lotte did - and she'd never even been that close to him. "I think so. I mean, there are... books and things about white witches, aren't there? I'm sure some use their powers for good rather than evil." Shield spells had to be white magic, since they were used to protect others. Somehow that didn't seem very evil, even if Gabby did just use them to protect herself.

Instead of tensing and pulling away, the contact made Bran smile. A part of him asked what he was doing, but he shrugged it off. "Good to know. Thanks."

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i_luv_shoes
2010-07-20 03:57 am UTC (link)

"I'm sure there are. Ironically, I haven't read many books about witches per se. I just studied the magic itself. It was part of my conversion to Buddhism and, well, I was intrigued by the magic and wanted to learn more," she said, and was proud of her ability to pick up 'the craft' rather quickly. Gabby had a lot of natural talent, she told herself. Of course, she never considered the notion that it might be more than that.

She was glad to see him smile - it seemed to be a rare sight, but at least it wasn't one of those awkward, tight smiles - and she didn't care that she wasn't Christine or someone from Erik's story. Erik wasn't here now! She kissed Bran - his bottom lip, the top lip, then the third time she curved her lips around his and stole another one, sweetly, like candy - and warm like gin going down one's throat.

Eyelashes fluttering open, she went back down on the balls of her feet. "But yes! Back to tofu," she chirped, moving the pot of sauce off of the stove with one hand.

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