InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "is that what i think it is"

Der Tod (touto_kaka) wrote in labyrinth_rpg,
@ 2009-05-15 15:53:00

Entry tags:

complete, day nine, der tod, rudolf habsburg

Who: Der Tod & Rudolf
What: Reuniting
Where: F dorm second floor hallway
When: Day nine, evening
Rating: PG-13 for suggestivness
Status: Complete

He had felt it this morning, while he'd been settling into his (far too sparse) room. At first, he'd figured he was mistaken. After all, he'd been there when that particular life had ended, had given the boy the gun, had caught him as he fell. Had welcomed him into the lands of the dead. And yet... No, he must be mistaken. It was probably someone who was similar to the late Crown Prince. Such things had happened before, so Der Tod put it out of his mind as he went out to explore the limits of this cage.

The presence was a constant irritant throughout the day however and kept him from focusing as much attention as he'd wanted to on testing the boundaries of this place. Finally, he'd given up and returned to his room, only to realize not only was said presence in the same building, it was apparently in the very next room.

And at that close a distance there was no mistaking it. The presence in the next room was none other than the Crown Prince Rudolf, somehow alive. This was an outrage, a complete violation of the natural order. Der Tod snarled and raged a bit before forcibly bringing himself back under control. There was quite literally nothing he could do about it right now. He might as well see the boy, confirm it was indeed him.

He knocked twice on the door, mentally seething that he couldn't just walk right in.

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touto_kaka
2009-05-15 09:56 pm UTC (link)

A carriage. Things not going well with the Emperor. Worry. Asking if the others were safe. Der Tod nodded slightly to himself as he filed the information away. He was quickly getting an idea what was going on here. Time was often a fluid thing in the lands of the dead, and it seemed the same was true here. The difference of course being that he was being affected. Yet another indignity this so-called 'King' had to answer for.

"I believe Elmer was shot" he said carefully. It was something that could easily be explained away if he was wrong about Rudolf's present. He doubted it though. He was seldom wrong.

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rudorufu
2009-05-15 10:03 pm UTC (link)

Rudolf's eyes widened and his mouth fell open in shock. "Shot," he repeated, his voice flat. He clenched his hands into fists as he tried to keep hold on his emotions. He felt a pain in his chest and shut his eyes, shaking his head as he felt his throat constrict as well. "My father's doing?" he managed to ask. He couldn't look up, not just yet. His friend had seen him at his best and at his absolute worst, but Rudolf still felt a need to try to appear strong in front of the man.

He took several deep breaths, then looked up at the other man again, concern still showing on his face. "Zeps? Stefan? Jura?" he asked, not sure he wanted to know, but compelled to ask anyway.

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touto_kaka
2009-05-15 10:12 pm UTC (link)

Der Tod nodded with all apparent sympathy. "His soldiers yes." He moved over to put a comforting hand on Rudolf's shoulder. "It was only a leg wound though. I believe I saw Zeps helping him but beyond that..." He knew what had happened of course. All had been hunted down and executed, the better to cover up the Crown Prince's involvement. Not that he was going to tell Rudolf any of that of course.

"Don't worry about that right now" he said soothingly, gently stroking the back of Rudolf's hair. And then, casually, as if it made little difference he asked, "Where were you heading?"

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rudorufu
2009-05-15 10:21 pm UTC (link)

Zeps helping Elmer.... Rudolf remembered seeing that himself, at the cafe. He'd told them to run, and held off the soldiers as best he could before he was dragged back to the palace. So his friend knew little more than he did about what had happened to the rest of their group.

"They must have gone a different way than you when you all ran," Rudolf said. He took another deep breath as he felt a comforting hand on his shoulder, and unconsciously leaned into the touch. It was a familiar enough gesture. "I hope they're all safe," he said, letting his eyes fall shut as he felt his friend's fingers against his neck and scalp. "If you were able to escape, I'm sure they were too."

When asked where he was heading, Rudolf sighed. "My hunting lodge, Mayerling. You remember it, don't you? You helped convince me to buy it." A slight smile played at his lips. "I needed to get out of Vienna and clear my head. Father seemed happy to let me go, under guard, of course." He tilted his head back, again leaning into the touch. "He wouldn't let me see anyone before I left, or I would have asked one of my servants to try and take you a message."

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touto_kaka
2009-05-15 10:28 pm UTC (link)

Der Tod continued stroking Rudolf's hair and neck, smiling to himself both at the boy's reaction and his innocent assumption that the others were safe. He had to choke back a laugh at Rudolf's wording regarding his reasons for going to Mayerling. Clear his head indeed. Rather permanently in fact.

"Don't worry about it," he repeated. "I doubt your servants would have found me anyway"

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rudorufu
2009-05-15 10:36 pm UTC (link)

"I would have at least asked them to try," Rudolf insisted. "But Father was adamant about keeping me hidden away. He said something about 'keeping things quiet'." He scowled. His father never understood, never tried to understand his reasons for wanting a change. Nothing as drastic as what Zeps had implied, of course, but change had to happen, or they'd suffocate on the resentment of the citizens and be overtaken by the new Germany and its more severe worldview.

"What about you?" he asked, tilting his head back farther to look up at his friend. "You escaped, clearly. How did you come to be here?"

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touto_kaka
2009-05-16 07:54 am UTC (link)

Der Tod shook his head slightly, an amused smile playing on his face. Poor little too-focused Rudolf. He gave the boy's shoulder a reassuring squeeze and walked over to lounge on the bed. He arranged himself carefully on the rather uncomfortable mattress, slightly alluring, but not lewd. The boy wasn't that blind.

He debated redirecting the question, reluctant to give away any information, but he decided a tiny bit of truth couldn't hurt. "I am not exactly sure." he said, "I had been... talking with... an old friend, left to go outside and found myself here." True, as far as it went. He gave a slight shrug. "The question of course becomes what are you going to do now?"

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rudorufu
2009-05-16 08:55 am UTC (link)

Rudolf turned in his chair, following his friend's movement when he felt the man's hand leave his shoulder, and watched him settle down on the bed. He listened carefully to what had happened and nodded. "Walked through a door into a strange new world," he said.

When asked what he was going to do now, Rudolf sighed. "I'm not sure. This place still doesn't make much sense to me. The woman who helped me this morning, Gabrielle, she said if you went through a type of maze, you could speak with the king of this place." He tried to remember her exact words, but found for some reason he could not, and he frowned. "I suppose I'll try to gain an audience, and ask that he send me home. I'm useless to anyone here." He looked up at his friend and smiled. "At least you're here with me. Together, I'm sure we can come up with something."

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touto_kaka
2009-05-16 05:05 pm UTC (link)

"You're not useless" Der Tod said with an indulgent smile. No use letting the boy get into one of his cycles of self-pity. "But I agree. I wish an audience with this... King." He wasn't quite sure he wanted Rudolf tagging along to take on the Labyrinth though. He could move fast and deal with whatever the king threw easier if he wasn't playing the devoted friend. And yet, it could be interesting...

"Perhaps tomorrow I can show you around?" He'd already explored most of the area, but he highly doubted Rudolf had.

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