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Post by Tamika Weir on Dec 9, 2010 21:09:50 GMT -8
Time: Day 2, Afternoon
Weather: Raining
Warnings: Talking to the undead?
Characters: Tamika Weir [OPEN]
The drive to the graveyard was agonizing, to say the least. The shadows from last night were still out and still were eager to jam their hands down her throat. "Don't these guys ever give it a rest?" Tamika was able to make it to the graveyard with minimal injuries to her and her car. Still, after shadows, having breakfast with Kaysen, and going to meet a corpse, Tamika was getting quite annoyed. "Just find him, ask him what I need to, get out of here. Then I can sleep the rest of today away."
Making her way through the gravestones, Tamika had her eyes peeled for the undead gravekeeper. "Brian!" Tamika called out, "Brian, you here?" "Well duh, where else would he be?" She headed toward the shack and prepared to knock on his door again.
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Post by Brian the Insomniac on Dec 10, 2010 0:55:05 GMT -8
Before she could knock on the door to the shack, it swung open - revealing a rather confused, surprised looking Brian standing in the doorway.
"You. Um. Tamika? You - are - back?" He blinked at her, canting his head slightly to one side...before realizing what was going on outside and the predicament she was likely in. Stepping aside with a shuffling motion, he gestured for her to come in so that she could get out of the rain. "Come - in. I...I bet you. Are. Curious. You see them. Don't you? You can. See. Them?"
His stilted way of speaking hadn't changed...nor had his clothes, actually. He looked exactly as he did the first time they had met, every smudge and tear in the same spot. The mostly-empty shack didn't seem inviting...but it was more inviting than the screeching crows that started to look at Tamika like she was something rather tasty. At least the shack was dry...Brian hadn't even tracked any water into the dust on the floor.
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Post by Tamika Weir on Dec 10, 2010 5:37:34 GMT -8
"Thank you Brian" Tamika stepped into the dusty old shack. It didn't seem quite inviting to her, but it was dry and didn't have shadows in it. That immediately placed it a few levels above outside.
In contrast to Brian, Tamika looked quite different from yesterday. Her disheveled hair, torn jacket, and tired eyes made her look like she had had a rough night last night. Her demeanor was less perky and more tired and annoyed than before. Tamika took in her surroundings then turned back to Brian.
"Yes, I started seeing them yesterday late at night." Tamika unconsciously put a hand over the cut on her left arm, as if remembering the shadow with the shotgun. "I need to know what they are and why I can see them." Her voice was less friendly than yesterday, seeming a bit irritated with her entire situation. "You better know something Brian."
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Post by Brian the Insomniac on Dec 10, 2010 18:13:02 GMT -8
The strange man shut the door behind her, locking it with a little latch to keep out the creatures and the weather. He could tell she was annoyed, he could tell she was upset...even injured. Her words made him wince, dark lips curling into a frown. "Oh," he answered at first, turning to regard her. He stared for a moment, trying to work out what to say about all this, how to say it - so rarely did he get to speak to anyone....
Quietly, he sat down cross-legged on the floor, long, gawky figure looking strangely twisted in that position. He gestured for her to sit with him, his hand trembling as it formed the motion.
"Questions. Good questions. They - this - this town...the rain. The rain is. Not. Good. The rain. The dark. They come out late - they come out - in rain. Shadows...shadows of - the - the past." Reaching up, he fiddled with his hat, tugging the brim down to obscure his eyes. Speaking was...alien to him now, it seemed - enough so that his words came out jumbled and warped around. "Angry...they...they're angry. Hurt. More than - they - hurt - you."
This seemed a strange thing to say...was he...defending them?
Or...was he defending himself more than anything else?
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Post by Tamika Weir on Dec 10, 2010 18:43:57 GMT -8
Tamika quietly sat across from Brian and listened to what he said. Sadly, he only succeeded in making her quite confused. "So the rain and the dark draw these shadows out. But why? Why do they come out in the rain and the dark? And 'shadows of the past'? Does he mean they're dead? So are they zombies? Ghosts? And what would kill them all in such a way that they would all come back?" So many questions tumbled through her head that she had to bite her lip to prevent her from drowning the poor man in them. Then he said something strange.
"They're hurt more than I am? Sure, they didn't hurt me that much, but they were trying to KILL me." She was about to tell him this, but then held back. "It's not only the shadows outside he is talking about." Tamika bowed her head slightly, as if apologizing. "He only knows these answers because he IS one of them."
"What made them angry?" Tamika asked sullenly, "Who hurt them?"
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Post by Brian the Insomniac on Dec 10, 2010 19:48:31 GMT -8
The Gravekeeper could tell, even without looking, that the girl was getting frustrated with what he had to say. Of course she wouldn't understand right away - he knew that - but his lack of human interaction had left him feeling...vulnerable, nervous. Brian wanted to make more sense, truly he did...but...he couldn't, not anymore. She seemed to calm a bit partway through her words...perhaps reconsidering them, he hoped, as she realized his sad situation.
In response to her question, he gave a short whimper, almost recoiling from the subject - his hands clenched at the brim of his hat, pulling it down more forcefully in a nervous movement. "He. He did. They all died. That day. That - day." His voice filled with fear, sorrow - it was clear that he had died the same way that they had, whatever it had been. "The Massacre. All - died. All. Died."
He was less than coherent, but at least she was getting SOMETHING...someone horrible had killed a number of people.
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Post by Tamika Weir on Dec 10, 2010 20:09:22 GMT -8
"'Oh, he's been gone...fifty years now. Just like a lot of us.'" Polly's words from earlier came to mind. "Fifty years ago. Brian and all those other people died fifty years ago. And now they're all shadows. All killed by one man. How did one man kill so many?" Instinctively, Tamika reached out and put a hand on Brian's shoulder. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to remind you of..." Her words trailed off, not wanting to cause Brian anymore pain. Stepping back away from him, Tamika said shakily, "I can go, if you prefer." "If everything I ask is going to leave him like this, I think I've heard enough for now."
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Post by Brian the Insomniac on Dec 10, 2010 20:54:39 GMT -8
Brian didn't move away when she rested her hand on him - in fact, he seemed to ease into the touch a little bit. He was so cold...could he feel how icy his body was compared to Tamika's hand? The man trembled a little bit under the contact, slowly pulling his head up as she started to move away.
It hurt, thinking about it. It did hurt. But...she was going to be fighting for her life now. She still had one. If there was something he could do...wasn't it important for him to do it? Slowly, he reached up, pulling off his hat to look at her directly. His eyes were sad, his jaw quivering, but he spoke all the same, his tone soft.
"Wait. Please. Wait. You - you are - right to ask. Danger. You are in...danger." He cringed at his own words, knowing how poorly he was speaking. "...The birds. Animals. The rain. It's. It - is - bad - for - them."
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Post by Tamika Weir on Dec 11, 2010 3:19:41 GMT -8
Tamika looked straight at Brian. She was shocked that he still wanted to help her. Even though helping her most likely meant more pain for him and pain to everyone he ever knew. Sitting back down, Tamika looked him in the eye and asked, "Do you remember anything about what caused this? I'm so sorry to ask, but anything at all could be helpful." She fervently hoped that he wouldn't regret agreeing to help her.
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Post by Brian the Insomniac on Dec 13, 2010 1:31:18 GMT -8
Brian waited until Tamika had sat back down before he even ventured to speak again...he needed that much time to steady himself, his hands resting on his knees and clenching tight around them. She was right about the pain - this...was difficult to talk about. His lips quivered, his voice very quiet indeed as he attempted once again to relay facts.
"Don't know. Don't - really - know. Was here. Working. Digging...graves. The air got. Foggy. Heavy. Couldn't - breathe - really. It was raining. Don't remember...don't remember much. Running. Was angry. Very...angry." He shuddered as he tried to remember something else, any other details...but he felt as if he were getting colder, remembering that horrible night. He wrapped his arms around himself, shaking a little as he tried to continue.
"There was...screaming. Got hit. Something...sharp. Fell. Got...cold...."
He trailed off, eyes falling to his lap.
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Post by Tamika Weir on Dec 13, 2010 8:47:56 GMT -8
She put her hand on his shoulder again and gave Brian a kind smile. "That's enough. Thank you Brian." "Ok, so there was some type of fog. Maybe a gas attack? Or something." To be honest, his story hadn't told her much. "I'm not going to get much out of him at this rate. Maybe he knows someone else with answers."
"Brian, do you know anyone who was at the massacre who..." Her voice trailed off. "Not completely sure if it's the best idea to ask someone who died if anyone lived."
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Post by Brian the Insomniac on Dec 13, 2010 12:39:49 GMT -8
The pale man started when she touched him, looking up at her with his eyes misted over. He was glad when she told him to stop...he wasn't sure how much more he could say, honestly. The question was a difficult one...but at least it didn't force him to think of his own death. Pursing his lips a moment, he shifted his gaze off to one side, peering as if divining the answers in the dust on the floor.
"...Polly. I think. Polly - at - the - hotel? Not...buried...here. Alive." He thought a moment longer, then turned his eyes towards her. "Also...Sigourney. Hard to. Find. Her. But she was...there. And...one...more. Harry. Harry Stewart. Seen him...here. Visited. With. Mister Tillotson. Still alive...still....sharp. Might know. Might remember."
He looked at her hopefully, praying something he said would be of some use.
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Post by Tamika Weir on Dec 13, 2010 16:06:19 GMT -8
"Hmm...Polly already proved this morning that she doesn't remember anything useful. As for the other two...I've never heard of either of them. He seemed to imply that Harry Stewart may be a better bet than Sigourney. And he mentioned someone else...Tillotson? That name sounds familar..." Her eyes widened as she suddenly remembered. "That was the last name on the two gravestones that Raincloud was looking at yesterday. So maybe this Stewart guy knows Raincloud. Or at least who this Tillotson guy really is. And HE might know about Raincloud."
Smiling, Tamika said, "Thank you Brian. You've been a huge help." Then she stood up and headed toward the door. "That's all the questions I have. I'll come back again later, if you like." Opening the door she headed out into the rain and went quickly back to her car. "Well, that told me a lot. And I have another person I can look up later. Today has been a successful day."
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Post by Brian the Insomniac on Dec 13, 2010 23:25:57 GMT -8
Brian watched the girl as she got up, not bothering to rise himself - he was glad that he was helpful, even if only a little. If he could help bring even a little bit of peace to the town...if he could save someone's life, keep them from joining the graves outside...it was worth a bit of heartache.
"I would. Like that. Visit. Yes." He tried to smile, but it didn't quite happen, his face only twitching. When she left, he remained seated, staring at the footprints she had left in the dust.
The first sign of life in this little shack in years.
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