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Post by Shade on Nov 1, 2007 4:20:35 GMT -5
Shade bent her head slowly, watching Gambit draw the blood across her chest. It looked familiar, she thought, painting each other, but why did he not take something else for it? Blood just seemed so... wrong. She raised her eyes again just as slow, seeking his glance, her mouth opening slightly, soundlessly forming the beginning of a "What...?" It cost her huge efforts to think, to even keep her eyes open, but something told her she must not close them, she had to watch him.
There was something wrong with Gambit and since fear had already been dealed with it was strangely enough worry now that took hold on her for a moment. Her affection for him ran too deep not to have that surfacing at some point. There was something wrong. What was going on with him? Something about Gambit was not right and it distressed her more than her own state did. She pulled up all her strength, all her sanity and the remaining shards of logic she still possessed which was by far the smallest part. She concentrated hard, so hard that it nearly made her sick, but in the end she somehow managed to pierce the thick layer that was covering all her being, dulling her. "Gambit...?" she breathed and it sounded not scared, but utterly confused and helpless. Nothing of this made sense.
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Post by Gambit on Nov 1, 2007 4:26:57 GMT -5
He heard her speak his name, and a lump formed in his throat for a second. He knew her death would not go easy on him - he would miss her terribly, he did love her, but this was more important than love. He had needed that for years, and couldn't let the opportunity slip just because he was weakened by affection.
He shook his head a little to shake the momentary confusion off and got the bottles with potions. Standing on his feet, he felt the ground oscillate under him for a few moments, the drug was taking its toll - and when he regained his balance, he returned to Shade.
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Post by Shade on Nov 1, 2007 4:34:20 GMT -5
It was impossible for her to speak more, there was no power left in her to do that. All that was left to Shade was utter confusion, now mingling with fear again and every bit of that was mirroring in her eyes when Gambit turned towards her again. She tried to find his gaze, read in it, try to make sense where there was none. Understanding he behaving so strange, she trie to push that aside to see Gambit how she knew him. Where had he gone? A restless and at the same time dulled flicker entered her eyes when very deep down she began to realise that it was not her perception being off, but that he was doing that with a purpose. The question that remained and was more tormenting than anything else was: why?
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Post by Gambit on Nov 1, 2007 4:44:29 GMT -5
Stopping in front of her, Gambit raised the bottles, staring at them. He tried to remember which one was for her, which one for him. Green bottle was probably for him... or was it the blue one?.. He couldn't remember, and realized it was the scented sticks that had gotten him so confused. He turned his head to pointlessly glare at them, finding they had long burned out.
Come on, LeBeau, think logical. The logic only served as far as bring the associations with the colors of sky and grass. He shut his eyes, trying to get it all straight. If he was to gain power as a result of the ritual, and Shade was to die... probably he had to go with the color of the sky and leave the grass thing to her. Logically. He couldn't imagine since when Voudun magic oriented itself on basic comparisons in colors, but it was the best solution he could come up with at the moment.
Opening his eyes, he glanced at Shade, as if expecting help from her. "Blue is for me, green is for you - right?"
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Post by Shade on Nov 1, 2007 4:54:06 GMT -5
He was confused, her remaining instincts told her that and again her fear was replaced with worry. What could wind him up like that? She didn´t like that. She didn´t want to play this game any longer, it scared her and got Gambit all strange. She wanted to get lose here and just hug him, because in her onedimensional logic that would set her little world right again.
Shade looked at the bottles then at Gambit when he spoke to her. She needed a few seconds to make sense of what he was saying and the fact that he did speak, that he finally said something after he had not reacted earlier, was somehow soothing. Gambit speaking to her was her Gambit, Gambit asking her things was as well, Gambit killing chickens and drawing with blood - although her memory had almost dismissed that again - was not. Again she looke down at the bottles. Blue, the thought. Green. Pretty colours. Good colours. Rogue likes green. Her thoughts were as simple as that, sniplets of words, fragmented sentences. She slowly nodded.
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Post by Gambit on Nov 1, 2007 5:00:38 GMT -5
Shade was agreeing with him there, and even though he dimly realized she had no way of knowing what he asked her, the mere fact that something was in accordance with his thoughts calmed him down. He put the green bottle to her lips. "Just one gulp," he instructed.
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Post by Shade on Nov 1, 2007 5:07:13 GMT -5
Gambit kept talking which gave her the feeling of a connection. That connection had not been there moments ago during all his bustling around the room doing weird things instead of concentrating on her and talking to her. Things seemed more like they should be now, lessening her fear even more. The confusion had replaced part of the mad glimmer in Gambit´s eyes which made Shade think that things were almost all right again. Gambit confused she could deal with.
Shade did not struggle against the potion. He had said the other was for him, so there could be no danger. Her trust was still there, strengthened again strangely enough, by his confusion. She swallowed, tasting the liquid on her tongue before she did so. It tasted funny. She could not sort in the taste.
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Post by Gambit on Nov 1, 2007 5:13:51 GMT -5
Gambit followed suit, taking a gulp from his own bottle. It had a weird taste. He placed both potions aside, there was no need in them any longer.
Now it was only the powder, and the chant that would set the magic in action. He took the small vial with powder and trickled some onto Shade's chest so that it mixed with the blood marking. He repeated the same with his own mark. Putting the vial away, he looked around, making sure he hadn't forgotten anything. It was hard to be sure of that, though - he really wasn't thinking straight, and was already beginning to think that it would be best if he just lay down and took whatever came to him. Probably the same lack of willingness, he thought, that took over Shade some time earlier. But the effect of sticks would be completely gone as soon as the ritual was finished, so it didn't worry him.
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Post by Shade on Nov 1, 2007 5:19:07 GMT -5
Gambit drank as well and she felt her point proven. The fact that since the potions differed in colour they most likely differed in effect as well, seemed beyond possible. No blood any more, Shade thought slowly, watching him work with the powder. Powder covering blood. That was good, because the whole thing about the blood had been the strangest of it all. She smiled stupidly.
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Post by Gambit on Nov 1, 2007 5:26:02 GMT -5
Gambit looked the cross over. As far as he could remember, it corresponded with cardinal points. That was, the top indicated north, right-left was east-west, and the bottom was south. He turned around, then glanced back at the cross, trying to coordinate it with his position. Or was it Shade's right-left that was now indicating east-west, not his own? He turned around again. Or was it Shade's head that indicated south? It could be, since it was her head. He wouldn't be able to explain the logic behind the 'head=south' pair if someone asked him at the moment, but it seemed plausible.
Nevertheless, he decided to go by his initial arrangement, not allowing himself to be further confused, even though it was getting increasingly difficult.
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Post by Shade on Nov 1, 2007 5:33:37 GMT -5
Whatever it was, Gambit was doing, it looked funny. Shade smiled a little wider for absolutely no reason, still looking every bit as drugged as she was. Why didn´t he just stop this nonsense and do a real game instead? Her fingers moving slightly, she tried to shift a little in her bonds but to no avail.
The state the drugs had but her in were putting her through all kinds of basic patterns of behavior, basic sets of emotion. Fear she had dealt with earlier, worry had subsided after he had started talking, now, looking over at him she once more noticed that Gambit was half naked and her dulled mind focussed on that instead.
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Post by Gambit on Nov 1, 2007 5:36:27 GMT -5
Gambit looked at the top of the cross, focusing on the fact that he was now facing north. He closed his eyes and chanted, "Olande, Olande, Olande..."
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Post by Shade on Nov 1, 2007 5:40:22 GMT -5
Shade kept watching him. She could not understand what Gambit was saying, it made no sense to her but she liked the sound of his voice when he chanted, she had always liked when he sang and this was similiar so she listened, her lips trying to imitage the words as a child would do trying to speak.
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Post by Gambit on Nov 1, 2007 5:41:29 GMT -5
Turning to face east, Gambit continued, "A Table, A Table, A Table..."
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Post by Shade on Nov 1, 2007 5:44:03 GMT -5
The next part of that funny song did not make much sense either. Table. He spoke it as it was written which meant it could be no English word, still it reminded her of it. The thought that Gambit might sing about tables was funny and Shade nearly chuckled. Her fingers kept moving slightly as she did no longer want to stay confined but had no choice but do so and most of her mind did not even want to struggle against the leather straps.
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