a cruel romance [night 8]

[worldchampofmartialarts]

[Death never has a meaning, but if we so choose to seek out patterns in a desperate attempt to imbue meaning into the twisted charades and senseless loss of life, we might come to the natural conclusion that love has no place here. That no matter how close a relationship may become, we can never know anyone else as intimately as we know ourselves.

Ultimately, we are all entirely alone, unable to truly understand anything beyond our deeply limited perspectives.

It's pointless even pretending any of us, alive or dead, are people deserving or capable of love.

Well, to hell with that.

We can always put in the effort.

Even when the circumstances get worse, we can always be better.

So let's give it a try.]

Comments

[rangerslayer]

[ ...So all that happened. It all did and Kim's completely fine with it, promise.

She's so fine that she's getting a drink in the bar. It's just a small one, and she can't seem to even focus on it.

After that, she can be found throughout most of the night down at the beach. She's got that bow, and she's shooting some of her homemade arrows at an equally homemade target--just some driftwood set up, pushed into the sand, with different colors of paint on it--in silence. Most of the time, she hits her target. She walks over and retrieves her arrows, as those are important to keep gathered up, and then she goes again.

It's efficient. It's focused. It's well-oiled. It's...

My Ranger Slayer, there you are... I've been searching for you.

Her teeth grit and her jaw clenches, and her arms tense up and her shot goes wild, high into the air, as she throws the ornate bow across the beach with an uncharacteristic scream of rage. Her hands are shaking. She breathes heavily.

After a few minutes, she retrieves the bow. She starts again. ]

[ooc: hey y'all!! threads here will include reference or discussion of mind control and non-consensual relationships. the beach ones will almost definitely, and the ones at the bar possibly will. all will be marked for, but please bear this in mind! ]

[beardcheck]

[Okay, Grog is no stranger to rages, and that was definitely a rage.]

...You need'ta punch something so you don't break your shit throwing it around?

[Or he's got beer, but Kim doesn't seem like the type.]

[rangerslayer]

I'd rather break this shit.

[ It's with a harsh and clipped tone that she replies. ]

[beardcheck]

Oh. ...Y'could probably do better'n throwing it around like that then, y'gotta get like a good. You know, snap to it.

[He mimes bending the bow sharply in half.]

[He's helping.]

[rangerslayer]

Damn-- just, shut up, for a second, okay?

[ A deep, horribly pained breath and she scoffs. ]

I know how to break the damn thing. I just can't.

beach

[neverstudied]

[Well. Looks like he was right to be worried, huh.

Venkman keeps his distance for a while, not wanting to be the victim of an errant shot if she gets startled. But when Kim throws the bow, he figures now's his chance- can't really get shot if she doesn't have a bow in her hands. Stabbed, maybe...

When he walks up, he tries to make as much noise as he can with each step- so she knows he's coming, and can collect herself if she needs. Venkman stops a good few feet away, not wanting to get in her space. It's important to him that he doesn't screw this up.

Kim's helped him plenty the last week or so. Maybe now it's his turn.]

Hey.

[rangerslayer]

[ She doesn't move. Her shoulders continue to heave up and down as she breathes heavily. For a moment, it seems like maybe she hadn't heard him?

...

But her head turns, ever so slightly. ]

Hey.

[neverstudied]

[He waits for a few moments. Gauging her reaction. Waiting to see if she'll say any more, when she doesn't, he sighs.]

If you- you need to talk, I can listen. Or I can talk, you listen, if that's what you need instead.

[The unspoken but fairly obvious implication, of course, is that Venkman's not leaving her alone like this, at least until he thinks she's a little more stable, a little less "quietly trying to not fall apart".]

[rangerslayer]

[ She just can't make this easily, apparently. ]

I don't... I don't really know what I need, right now.

beach

[worldchampofmartialarts]

[As he aimlessly walks down the city streets, he can't shake Kimberly from his mind. He doesn't want to. He's worried about what the trial must've done to her, and even more worried by the fact that it doesn't look like it did much to her, from the outset. But he knows a thing or two about repressing your "weaker" emotions to put on a brave face for everyone. How somebody laughing or keeping their cool after a tragedy might be struggling with the weight of their emotions even more than the people openly grieving- because crying, at least, gets it out of your system.]

[So what do you do when you've told yourself you have to be too strong to cry- to show any vulnerability? How do you get those emotions out of your system?]

[...the arrow flying straight up into the air from the beach might be a hint.]

[He should've known- of course, he should've known- but. Now isn't the time to think of what he should know or not, what he knows, absolutely, for a fact, is that he can't leave Kimberly alone with her thoughts after all of this.]

[Satan nearly stumbles over himself running towards the beach, and once he makes it there, he has to dart his head around rapidly to search for Kimberly's silhouette in the distance. Once he finds it- he clenches his fists, takes a breath, and starts taking a long walk towards her. He doesn't even call out to make his presence known. He's sure, in her current state of solitary focus, she can just sense it coming.]

[rangerslayer]

[ By this time, she's picking up the bow. That awful fucking bow, with all of its history and horror. Knelt on the ground like this, it's sometimes hard to even feel you can get up.

But she gets up. And she turns, she looks...so very tired, in the moonlight. Instead of thirty-eight, she looks decades older. In her eyes, there's endless exhaustion. ]

What do you want?

[worldchampofmartialarts]

[There's a long silence hanging in the air between them as Satan steels himself for what he's about to say, wrestling with so many thoughts of what he could say to her.]

I... I know you want to get your anger out. I'm not here to tell you to cheer up and stop feeling that way. I stand by what I told you before- it ain't fair for anybody to expect you to keep your head all the damn time, when you got every right to be mad. It's only human. You can't just bottle it up forever, that bad energy needs to come out at some point or you're gonna break under the pressure.

...but if I had to give my advice- I'd say it's harder to get that anger out when you're all alone, standing still hitting at fake targets in the distance. Lot more cathartic to go hand-to-hand. Against another person.

[...]

You don't have to take me up on the offer. But if you do, I promise: I won't be throwing anything back at you. [Life's been doing enough of that lately.]

[rangerslayer]

[ ... ]

Most people don't tell someone they can knock them senseless, you know.

[ Her grip on the bow is slack. ]

...Sure. I haven't gotten a spar in, in awhile.

beach party!!

[advancements]

[Xander arrives not long after Kim's thrown the bow, though he doesn't approach immediately. He's not sure if he should leave her be or not, but eventually he decides to approach.]

How are you holding up?

[It's not exactly the best question, but he figures it's better to let her answer it instead of jumping into "what's wrong". She might not want to talk about it, after all.]

[rangerslayer]

[ She's standing there, quiet. ]

...Not well.

[ Honesty, it's...you know, good, or something. ]

[advancements]

...Would you like to talk about it?

[It's a bit awkward, sure, but it's gentle. He's not going to push her to talk if she doesn't want to.]

[rangerslayer]

Honestly? I've no idea. Only a fraction of it's related to everything that happened today.

Beach

[boxingbuff]

[Ladd was on his way to the beach anyhow. It's becoming something of a routine for him; after all, how often could he see the ocean like this? Chicago just didn't have this.

Seeing Kimberly screaming in frustration is... well, it's a sight. A little amusing, honestly.

....Ah, fuck it. He approaches as she's retrieving her bow, hands in his suit pockets, cool and collected, as much as he can appear.]

Hey, pretty cool archery thing you've set up.

[rangerslayer]

[ Great. Just great. Kim straightens her back and feels herself reign it all in, like turning a hose in reverse. She bites back a curse as she turns. ]

I'm just keeping my skills polished. What are you doing here?

[boxingbuff]

Whats with that? A guy can't come down to the beach and take in the scenery? [He's the epitome of calm, considering everything that's happened, and how Kimberly probably hates him.] I come down to the beach every so often. It's a lot nicer than the Chicago harbor.

[The sand under his shoes, the breeze in his face. The random people he can antagonize...]

Can't say I'm much for the bow and arrow myself. But give me a shotgun and I'll hit any target I can find.

[rangerslayer]

[ Oh, she definitely hates him. Let us make that clear. ]

Please. Spare me the innocent act. I'm not exactly in the mood for...you.

beach

[iote]

[Michalis has a tendency, it seems, to find his way to the beach after things like this; it tends to be quieter, less full of people and with less chance of colliding with the dead, and when he comes here tonight he's...unsurprised, really, to find Kimberly here.

It isn't expected, but it isn't surprising.

And then she's screaming, and there's rage in it and the bow isn't in her hands anymore, and he approaches her when she finally moves to get it. He knows he's probably the last person she wants to see right now, simply because his presence isn't comforting in the least, but he hasn't ever acted in consideration of others' feelings and sees no need to start now.]

...Kimberly. I won't bother with asinine questions such as whether or not you're all right - I prefer to want to know what can be done, if anything.

[Do you want him to listen, do you want him to just shut up, do you want someone to fight with. Do you just want him to leave.]

[rangerslayer]

[ The bow's in her hand and she's fighting down the trembling. Though she's not looking in his direction, she takes a deep breath before addressing him. ]

What a hell of a concept. [ Jeez, she tries to keep her voice more measured than it actually is. ] ...Mostly I think I just hate this place.

[iote]

Understandably so.

[He's quiet for a moment, just remaining where he is, folding his hands behind his back.]

Many people respect you here. I wouldn't be surprised if that's part of the reason why you're here alone instead of seeking them out.

You don't have to be rational or calm or respectable in front of me. I'm not going to care, nor will I mind.

[rangerslayer]

The team I was with... The oldest of them was maybe 24. They were kids. Just a bunch of kids. I can't. I guess I just got into the habit, with everyone here, too.

[ Is she doing this now? ...Maybe. ]

...They wouldn't respect me, if they knew.