Gourry Gabriev (gourrygabriev) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2017-04-12 20:19:00 |
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Entry tags: | alecto carrow, gourry gabriev |
Who: Gourry and Alecto
What: Alecto "bothers" Gourry at work!
When: Tonight/April 12
Where: The Hanged Man
Rating/Warnings: None
Status: Completed
Alecto was bored. It didn’t happen often, but tonight she hadn’t felt like her usual adventures. Stalking around and taking pictures and spying on people just didn’t seem overly entertaining, so she decided to go downstairs and make herself useful. She had a feeling poutine gravy was in high demand all the time since she’d made so much of it in her time there. She couldn’t even remember how much gravy she’d helped to make. Plus, she could always entertain herself with the new help. They at least didn’t usually play the bartender role when they saw her around, which she was thankful for, because who wanted to talk about their feelings? She was pretty sure no one really wanted to have feelings either. Which was why she’d decided to stop having them. But who knew if she’d really had them in the first place? Depending on who you talked to, she didn’t. So why prove otherwise?
After a little indecision, Alecto eventually settled on an outfit. She thought it was fitting enough. It showed skin on the back and the jeans were tight. It was the unofficial-official outfit. Tight jeans. Or trousers. Whatever people preferred. Pants if you were feeling very American, which she usually wasn’t.
It was loud downstairs, but that wasn’t exactly unusual. She’d been working on spells to soundproof her flat upstairs so she didn’t have to hear all the loudness if she was trying to do something. It was taking longer than she’d expected to master some of the spells, but she was going to practise until she died - or, hopefully, didn’t die. Whatever happened. She was going to figure it out. She looked around hoping to find Isabela, but she was probably in the back or just somewhere she couldn’t see immediately, so she used magic to move a stranger’s drink down the bar so she could steal his spot. He got up, looking clearly confused before chasing after his drink. “Finders keepers,” she said in a sing-song voice as she took the seat.
A little cheating never hurt anyone.
Plus, she’d made a point to be subtle about it so no one would notice. It was until after she’d sat down that she noticed a new face behind the bar. “Hm. You must be the new person. Here I’d had a different outfit planned for this meeting. Time wasted.” She waved her hand like she was dismissing the thought. Not that any of that was true. “Well, it’s nice to meet you in person.”
Gourry was re-filling the ice and doing his little things that he’d been allowed to do--nothing too much. The man was mostly there to help around and to strong arm people if anyone got too wild. He finished, glancing up when he heard the girl. He quirked a brow, trying to tie her to a certain name. “Uh?” was all he managed out, blinking a few times in confusion. “Hi. I’m Gourry.” Yeah, that works when you’re confused. At least he managed to remember what to do during his job… right now, anyway.
Alecto bit down on her lip to keep herself from laughing. He just looked so confused. It amused her. “Yes. I gathered that,” she replied before holding out her hand. “Alecto Carrow. I live upstairs.” It explained her over familiar greeting and gave him a moment to catch up. “We spoke on the network. I was the one with the amazing personality.” She didn't exactly see the point in humility, but pride had always been one of her favorite sins. She grinned at him, making herself more comfortable. “You should get familiar with this face. You're going to see a lot of it. Sometimes I even help out. I'm told I have the magic touch.”
Ha ha.
Yes, that was a joke about magic from a witch. She was so funny. Now that the weirdness had passed, she allowed herself to laugh. “Your confused face is pretty adorable. I'd say I was sorry, but I rarely am, so there's no point.”
Gourry moved around the bar to come up to her easier, so he could shake her hand properly and give the bartender the room they needed. He was dressed in a simple black t-shirt that hugged his pecs just enough, and jeans that looked like he could barely maybe manage a squat in them. He flashed her a smile with all teeth, but it could be described as more as his “stupid smile” rather than a “woman wooing” smile.
“That’s right, I remember now! The really sure of herself lady. Pleasure to meet you, ma’am. I’ll definitely get used to seeing you around!” He beamed, happily. “Much easier to act cool when you have time to think about what you’re saying,” he added with a little laugh. “Real me isn’t so cool.”
Alecto may have allowed herself to study his figure for a moment. Very nice. Isabela was a saint and Alecto would argue it until the day she died or lost her mind. Whichever came first. Hopefully death. She turned her attention to his face again and nearly laughed at the smile, but just quirked an eyebrow instead.
“That's me.” She thought it was one her better qualities, really. Who wanted to sit around and wonder if other people thought they were interesting enough? Not her. “I count it a blessing that I am always cool. It's when I have too much time to think that things gets hairy.” She shrugged slightly. “So I try not to think too much. It gets in the way of my amazing powers.” She shrugged. “So I can cool enough for both of us.”
“Amazing powers?” Gourry smiled. “Pretty sure it sounds like everyone in this area has amazing powers.” He looked around. “Do you work or just laze around here?” He paused. “Not insulting!” he added quickly, “just curious. I think I should go stand… thataway,” he gestured off to the side. “Kind of taking up room that actual customers need,” he nodded, rubbing his chin. “At least until I’m needed to do dishes or stack things. Or carry things.”
She’d meant her powers at being cool, but she guessed he’d heard a thing or two about people around here. She pulled her wand out of her pocket, shrugging slightly. “Helps a little here and there.” It wasn’t exactly the best of dream adventures, but the magic was great. Really, everything up till she realised her part in being in a dream cult that liked to torture and kill people was pretty great. Though, she knew that the torturing and killing didn’t really bother her till recently. She tried not to focus on it too much, because that also led to too much thinking and a lack of general ‘coolness’. Outside of the wand, the only other dream gift she never went anywhere without was the Dark Mark on her left forearm. The proof that things from the dream were real.
She allowed for a smile when he asked if she actually worked. “I’m a forensic photographer. I work with the police department most of the time, photographing crime scenes. But when I have a little extra time, I help Isabela if she needs it. But with all this young, strong help they’ve been getting, I wonder if I’ll be of any use at all.” Ho hum. Alecto wasn’t really all that worried about it. It meant she could amuse herself more. Still, she got up and moved out of the way. She could get a drink later or just go to her flat and get something. “I’m sure the customers won’t mind your standing anywhere. They don’t exactly mind eye candy here. Sort of like Isabela, I guess.”
Gourry nearly tripped and fell over at her words, turning to stare wide-eyed at her. “You do that? That’s an amazing job!” he cried. “Like, that’s big time job work! Is it something you always wanted to do?” He looked her over. “...Huh, you kinda do look like the people that take those pictures on TV shows. Is that normal?” He tilted his head from one side to the other, much like a curious dog. “I bet you’re great at it though. I can’t imagine you’d be bad at it!” He stopped though, eying her wand. “What’s tha--” oh, different trail of thought coming, “I’m sure you’d be needed still!” He nodded quickly.
“I’m only here sporadically throughout the week, and for the next few weekends I’ll be at the Faire. So there’s a ton of help they’ll need, I’m sure!” He beamed happily at her, like his smile had the power to assure her.
Merlin, but he was like a small puppy. Happy, excitable people were a strange breed. Alecto attempted to understand them, but she rarely did. “Yes. I do that.” She found herself smiling despite her inner bewilderment. “I sort of fell into it, I guess. I’ve always liked documentaries on things like that, though, so I guess it was only a matter of time. I take pictures of other things sometimes, but eh. It’s not the same. Especially when you manage to find little things that other people miss.” She liked solving crimes...or helping to solve them. Though, it certainly wasn’t an altruistic sort of thing. “Has anyone ever told you that you closely resemble a small dog?” She thought about it for a moment before correcting herself. “A big dog, I guess. Like a lab.” Or Dog. Dog was always slobbering on her and laying on her if she got close enough to the ground for him to topple her over. Luckily, she liked dogs, so that had never been a problem for her.
She waited for him to stop telling her that she was still useful before answering his other question. It hadn’t exactly been finished, but she figured she had a good idea of it. “This is my wand. I’m a witch. In the dreams. Kind of a bad witch, but no one’s ever surprised by that.” She grabbed the tip of her wand between her thumb and forefinger, turning it in her hand. “I try not to do too much magic here, but if it’s useful, I don’t mind. Like fixing broken glasses or levitating things.”
“I have, yeah,” Gourry nodded with a happy smile. “Probably why my two labradors at home think I’m their dad so easily.” He stopped to listen, and his eyes only widened as she spoke. “Wait--like, a real witch? A witch witch?” He reached over to poke at the stick (it was a stick to him). “Like, like those movies and what people dress up as for Halloween?” Magic was real? There was no way. Why wouldn’t anyone else know about it? Hell, why would she be so openly telling him this if it were true?
Gourry squinted in suspicion. “Is this a test to see if I’ll fit in here?”
Alecto raised an eyebrow as he went on before laughing. “If it was, what would the test tell me?” She waited a little while before saying, “But no. I’m actually a witch and I guess people do dress up like us, but who knows the why behind it. It’s not like they’re real witches. I guess it would be cheating if I did that.” She looked around the room quietly for a moment to see what she could do in a room without being noticed immediately. She sighed after a moment before quietly doing a spell to make green sparks fly out of the tip of her wand. “It’s easier from afar where no one knows what you’re doing. Or in less crowded places.”
Gourry stared in shock, nearly jumping back. He managed to keep himself still, then looked at her, then the wand, then back to her… “So… magic, huh?” He cocked his head to the side. “Well, alright then. You’re a witch,” he nodded. He just… believed her! “You look like a serious, not lying kind of person. I’m no magic person, just an ordinary guy in tight pants.” He glanced down at his legs with a laugh, awkwardly.
“Magic,” she agreed. Magic was about the only thing that ever really made Alecto feel giddy (or as close to it as she could manage) without there being a crime scene involved. She beamed at his clear decision to believe her. It was the barest hint of magic and yet it was enough to convince him. Maybe that meant he needed to be told not to fall for everything, but then who was she to keep him from that? “I’m not sure I look exactly like that. I mean, I lie plenty. Just not about the magic part.” Her gaze again was drawn downward and she resisted the urge to laugh. “It’s a good thing I’ve been in America this long. Otherwise I’d be incredibly confused.” Glancing back up to his face. “Pants are what you call underwear. At least back home.” She smirked a little before adding, “But you are practically suited to wearing tight jeans and shirts, so I’d say keep up the good work.”
“Back home?” Gourry rubbed his chin. “I thought they’d be called knickers? Pantaloons? Oh! Is that where ‘pants’ comes from?!” He beams like he just figured it out.
“Knickers, pants. Both. Though, pants are used more for men than women, but can still be used for women.” She shook her head at him. “You’re an odd individual, which, coming from me, is saying something. I dream about being part of a dream cult that’s made up of a bunch of pretentious assholes all looking for power. And then I’m me in general.” She lifted up one shoulder in a shrug. “But they’re less lab-like types and more rabid dog types. So I guess you’ve got one up on them.” A compliment. How curious.
Gourry smiled at her, that same, dumb puppy smile. “Well, I’m glad I got something. You’re very nice. I have no idea what any of these dream things are, but I hope you don’t get hurt in them. Someone claimed recently about getting a television…” He looked lost. “I have no idea. I figured it was some kinda secret thing between everyone else and Hawke wanted to see how long I’d last.”
That smile. He really was a very small, very innocent human being. He had no business around Alecto, but she decided against mentioning it. “It’s hard to say where things are going, but…” She motioned to the tattoo on her left forearm. “That one hurt like a bitch, but at least I didn’t have to wait for it to heal. And being that I’m a bad witch, I have a feeling it’s not going to turn out well.” She offered him a small smile. “It’s all very real. The dreams make things all kinds of weird. Hopefully yours won’t be too crazy, but I sort of doubt it. Almost everyone has shit dreams.” Nodding toward the bar, she said, “But that’s what the alcohol’s for. And whatever else helps you keep your mind off it all.” Her hand moved to pat his arm.
Gourry reached to her arm, large calloused thumb rubbing over the tattoo. “This came from your dream?” He frowned, sincerely discontent about it. “It’s one thing getting it because you want, and an entirely different thing if you just woke up with it.” He lifted his bright blue eyes to her, staring into her eyes. “Bad witch? In the dreams? But that doesn’t need to carry over to be who you are here, yeah?” He smiled again. “I’d say, talking to me and dealing with me shows just how not that bad you are. It’s kind of like… so you made bad decisions in the past. Doesn’t mean you gotta keep making them in the present.”
Then he laughed, as stupidly as the blond could make it sound. “But what do I know?”
She stilled. No one had really touched the Mark before. Her last boyfriend hadn’t wanted to. She couldn’t blame him. But it was strange to have someone invade her space as opposed to her doing the same to them. Alecto hadn’t expected it. It was one of the few things that managed to actually surprise her. For a brief moment, the surprise registered on her face before she covered it up with her general neutral expression. “Dream me wanted to. More than anything.” She wasn’t entirely perturbed by its existence outside of the dreams. It was just that the more time that passed, the more uneasy she felt about it.
Her expression remained neutral when he stared at her. It was unusual to have someone believe something good about her. She almost laughed at how bizarre it was, how strange it was to hear someone say positive things about her. Sure, she had Isabela, Hawke, and Lina to do that, but they knew the dark parts of her. This was just...well, she wasn’t sure. These days, Amycus’ words rang through her more than theirs anyway. “You don’t know me,” she said quietly. “But thanks for the words of encouragement.” She flashed her easy, breezy smile, body relaxed and casual as she looked up to him. “I wasn’t cut out to be the good guy. I’m too self-serving for it.” She didn’t torture people here and she wasn’t going to kill anyone, but that didn’t really make her a better person. “But I can’t expect you to know that about me yet. We’ve only just met.”
Gourry didn’t seem to notice her internal conflict, but even if he had, that smile most likely would have remained. “I don’t know you, but I’m excited to get to know you. We’ll be seeing each other way often, right?”
Bewildered didn’t entirely cover the feeling that was building up inside her. She wasn’t really sure what to call it. But that happened a lot. She couldn’t explain any of the outlying things she was feeling outside of it either. “Yeah. Way often.” She managed to make it sound easy and without any true emotional weirdness. “I mean, I live upstairs.”
With a happy nod, Gourry let her hand go, folding his arms as he tried to look suddenly far too fierce than before. It worked, and the man slinking around stopped slinking to order a drink and sit at the bar nervously. He turned back to her with a happy smile. “Alecto, right? You ever go by something else?”
Alecto looked at him quizzically for a moment when he folded his arms and switched the look on his face. She wasn’t exactly sure what that was about, but it didn’t matter. “Alecto,” she agreed before shaking her head. “Nope. Just Alecto.” A pause. “But I’m not against Your Highness. I’m practically royalty. In the dreams. I don’t know about outside of them, but eh. I’ll pretend.” Another pause. “But Alecto’s good enough. It was a name of one of the furies from Greek mythology. Unceasing anger. That’s me.”
Gourry laughed, but it wasn’t mockingly at all. “Huh… ‘your highness’ feels somehow familiar,” he mumbled but shook his head. That train of thought poofed. “Well, Alecto, I’m happy we got to talk tonight. I should get back to looking like I’m working now,” he smiled again.