Here comes the next contestant [Ramsey and Leander, everywhere in the DGA]

Ramsey had slumped against the door. She had neither the energy nor the tears left to cry. Then the sweetest sound she could hear came from the other side of the door. His voice. Her ears perked up, she threw the door open, and glared at him. "You're lucky I love you. Or i'd kill you." she said in a voice that sounded like a heart dipped in acid. "Lee! How could you! You said you wouldn't leave and the first chance you get you prance off to avenge me!" she exclaimed. She sighed deeply, and shook her head. "However stupid you are...I still love you." she said softly and threw her arms around his neck, pressing her cheek to his chest. "Dont do that to me again!" she yelled into his chest, exasperated.

"If circumstances call for vengeance I will avenge dear one, especially if you are the main subject." As he said this he knew it was as true as his love for her. Anyone who tried to hurt her would pay dearly just as surely as his skin was marked. He looked down at her and even though her hair was disheveled and her eyes were red from crying she was still the most beautiful thing he'd seen in the world, his one and only salvation, his one and only love. "If this happens again I'll inform you before I go but if you follow..." he shook his head. Vainly he wondered if her life would be safer without him in it, if he were just a bystander and not a member would she lead a fuller life? He knew the answer but it pained him. "You know I would never be parted from you willingly but, I just want to keep you safe. You're the beating of my heart."

She smiled into his chest. "Youre heart is free to beat without me now." she said softly, tracing the lines on his chest, through his shirt. The patterns she new were there. The patterns her heart had memorized. She wondered what he was thinking, his expression seemed to change ever so slightly, but she decided to leave it alone. She didn't let go of him, hugging him tightly, it was morning, she realized. I sure slept for a while she noted to herself. She glanced at the window, where the sun was shining in.

Leander gritted his teeth together so tightly he felt like the strain would make his jaw shatter. He pulled away from her from fear that he’d somehow hurt her fragile bones just by being so angry. He turned with a disgusted look on his face, a gesture meant for himself and loudly led his head clonk onto one of the columns. The sound reverberated off the walls. Without wanting to his shadows began writhing about him violently in a treacherous dance expressing his displeasure. The column started cracking under the pressure of his fist. “Ramsey promise me you’ll never say that again. it’s a malicious lie.” If he looked at her before he cooled down he feared he’d be compelled to kill himself or worse yet, have his shadows erase her memories and leave.

Ramsey watched in horror as he hit his head against the Doric column. "Leander!" she yelled and rushed over to him. He wouldnt look her in the eye. "Leander, you know you must face the issues of my mortality, you must realize that!" she exclaimed. She didn't care if he wasn't affectionate at the moment, she squeezed herself between him and the column. She grabbed his face between her hands, looking deep into his irate eyes. "It is the truth, Lee. I will die eventually. You know this. And until that day, I will love you with my entire self, as I do right now." she smiled, willing his calm with her eyes. One of her hands moved up into his hair and she sighed. "Youre heart beats forever on now, I'm just lucky to have you in this instant in time." she whispered and kissed his clenched mouth gently, feeling his jaw soften below her lips.

He couldn’t help it, her lightest touch commanded his obedience. No matter how powerful a god he was or would become she would always be the one that would influence all choice, every decision of his was made around her. He untangled himself from her grasp and looked at his feet sullenly, “There must be some way. A quest, a favor, a sacrifice!” his voice rose steadily higher until he screamed the last word. She could not assuage his fury when she was not touching him and he felt like he needed to be angry at the moment. Frustrated he held his face in his hand and walked blindly in circles, the tattoos visible on his arms flashed brightly. “I’d do anything Ramsey, I’d do it all”

Ramsey watched him walk in circles, feeling slightly helpless. "Lee!" she commanded his attention. She stared him down, creating a scilence that lasted for one agonizingly long minute. Then she approached him slowly. She placed her hands inhis arms, seeming to turn his strobing tattoos into slow flickers. "Leander. Calm down. I've been alive for several years, we don't have to worry about this now. Don't be mad, please, not right now." her voice, which had began as a booming, authoritive tone had dropped off into a whisper. She took his hand and put it on her hip and smiled up at him. She wrapped her arms around his neck. She kissed him, hard, the slow passions that had built up in her releasing into this moment before them.

He held her closely, this was what he loved what he wanted. He answered accordingly pressing his lips against hers closing his eyes to enjoy the moment fully. Slowly, something in his mind switched, his thoughts were confused. Who was this? The pretty blonde daughter of Zeus from a decade ago? Nidria, Leta, Minthe, Anhura who? His thoughts, his body was completely and utterly confused. His spirit was more battered than he’d imagined and it had not been fixed by his changing into a god. Passions still disgusted him, physical connection was still looked at as repulsive because it NEEDED to be done. His wants had never taken into consideration he’d simply kissed and bedded women (along wit other unspeakable things) because it helped his fathers cause. He’d learned and applied all that was required from a man to a woman at an age where no one should have to go through such things.

Leander had had this type of endeavor forced upon him so many times that now that when he actually thought he wanted to be with someone, the very idea revolted him most. Quickly he let go of her and stumbled back bracing himself on the column he’d slammed his head against minutes ago. He took deep breathes to steady his lost sanity. He held out a hand as if saying ‘stop’ and looked sideway at the floor. Leander had moved from her so quickly it was almost as if he’d been burned. “I’m sorry, I just. I don’t know what happened.’ it was the only explanation he had, it was the truth. He’d spent his whole life prostituting himself unwillingly and now it was catching up faster than disease.

Ramsey was enjoying the long, deep kiss, the slight tugging at her shirt, her hands running over his back and up through his hair. All of a sudden he broke it and backed into the Doric column as if she had electrocuted him. The sudden movement of her support caused her to stumble before catching herself with a hand on the wall in front of her. She felt...sadened. As if what had happened was her fault. Her eyebrows furrowed. She looked away, not saying anything, embarrassed into scilence. She looked up, at his face but he was turned away. Age approached him, slowly, as if approaching a cowering animal, and stood close to him. She reached out and touched his arm, gently. Her heart broke at the slight recoil but she managed a smile. He looked at her. "Im sorry" she whispered quietly.

Leander resisted the urge to jump back when she touched his arm. His whole body was quivering as if each singular muscle in his structure was moving in a unique direction at a different place making every inch of his skin shiver. “It’s not your fault” he managed to choke out. Something was tearing him up from the inside out scratching its way through his bones into the open air. what have you done to me? something inside him screamed, what has triggered this punishment? ashamed at himself he refused to look in her direction. “I need-I need-” time? Understanding? He didn’t know. He shook his head and without even realizing it his shadows took over his body screaming and shrieking until Leander could no longer be seen by the human eye. He was standing in exactly the same place but remained as visible and tactile as the air around him. Frightened he found no words could reverse the effect.

Ramsey stared in utter scilence at the empty space before her. She reached out tentatively feeling the air to see if he disappeared altogether or something was critically wrong with her vision. As her hand met flesh, her face contorted into confusion. "....Lee?" her voice asked, although she wasn't in command of it. Dozens of thoughts crossed through her mind, none of them coherant. "What have I done?" she whispered, questioningly. She stared at her feet, because of her inability to look into his eyes.

When Ramsey stretched out to touch the space he was occupying he could feel it but when he reached out frantically to grab hold of her wrist his own hand swiped straight through skin, flesh and bone. “Ramsey! RAMSEY!!!” he yelled, his voice cracking with the force. But he realized she could not hear him when she looked away, down at her feet instead of what was presumed to be him in front of her. With tears in his eyes he made another grab for her wrist but the same thing happened but he noticed she hadn’t taken off the bracelet he had made for her, his soul in condensed form. Through his panic he tried to concentrate solely on the placid silvery design of the band around her wrist. “I’m here” he yelled “I’M HERE!” he watched relieved as the patterns on her wrist burned brightly with the force of his pleas but he was still at a loss for how to undo his invisibility.

His voice penetrated her mind as her bracelet frantically moved, it's designs whirring and swirling. "Im here!" his voice yelled. She looked at the void before her, reached her had forward to touch his chest, and she said aloud, "I hear you." she attempted to smile, but unknowing where his eyes were she could focus. "Lee? I'm here, too. I don't know what to do but baby, I'm sorry. She felt for his shoulders and when she found them, she embraced him, but couldn't feel his embrace back. With tears in her eyes, she stepped away. "I understand. I did this to you, I understand your anger. I..I...I'll go away...I'm sorry..." she whispered as the tracks of water ran down her face.

His breathing quickened and he was panicking again. This couldn’t be happening, he was a god not a child! Still hearing those words come from her broke him down into pieces as if someone had tried to whittle him into something useful and had come up with nothing but a pile of shredded flesh. He shook the image from his head. Ramsey would be standing amidst his shattered bones, she was the only good in him and it was hurting him more than he thought possible to hear her say such things, to see her cry and not be able to do anything.

Leander tried contacting her through the bracelet again but he was too frenzied to concentrate and he couldn’t get the message through as much as he yelled for her not to do it, as hard as he tried to fell her skin in something other than memory.

Ramsey turned to go, but something stopped her, the bracelet's frenzied movement. His soul was unhappy, not angry, but scared and helpless. She turned slowly, to where she thought he was. If he wanted her to leave, the band around her wrist would be complacent and calm, not swirling and whirring quickly. She took a step forward, and wondered aloud, "But if you don't want me to leave, why won't you hold me?" she asked, finding a hand andplacing it between her own, "We can touch eachother." her mind told her she was missing something terrible. More tears fell as this puzzle appeared before her.

“It’s her, it’s Ramsey.” he whispered to himself “She’s the one I want’ he tried desperately to remind himself that what had happened before was no longer an issue. He had to convince himself of it if he was ever going to gain control again. He quieted his mind, eased his muscles and felt only her fingers wrapped around his hand. “I want us to be happy together” he repeated it over and over again until he could feel himself gaining control of himself again. But the shadows fought him every step of the way, they knew he was only trying to fool them, the confines of his mind were still the scared boy who had to touch and be touched. He had been tainted by lovers, pulled into the night with sweet voices and velvet gloves. He fought his own mind for every inch for every second he grew more visible. Finally he was as solid as he had been minutes before but the efforts left him drained and he collapsed.

Ramsey watched as he suddenly materialized before her, collapsing. "Lee?!" she shouted. Seeing he was obviously unconcious, she set him on his couch and went into the kitchen. She wet a cloth with warm water and touched it to his face. She wasn't sure how to rouse him from sleep, but she went to her bag and took a few herbs, making a tea. After she made it she brought it over to him, allowing him to drink.

When Leander woke up the first thing he asked for was Ramsey. “Hon where are you?” She turned a corner right at that moment with a cup of something that smelled delicious even from a distance. He got up and stretched out before taking the tea from her and taking a sip. He looked at her over the brim. It was almost as if she was afraid to touch him again and he couldn’t help but realize that it scared him too. Leander set the cup down without looking away from her. “Ramsey… I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened I just…my mind can’t take…cant register the differences between-” he cut himself off with a frustrated sigh and put his head in his hands. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me Love. he said honestly. It was actually quite embarrassing for him to admit and he couldn’t bring himself to look her in the eye as much as his heart wanted to his thoughts were still utterly lost and confused.

Ramsey stayed at least an arms length away from him. "Between...what?" she asked, kindly. She tried to smile but her fear that what had happened was her fault overcame her. She turned away to hide the tears that were forming in her eyes. "Nothings wrong with you." she mumbled. "Its obviously me." she whispered, swallowing, and moving to take their cups back into his kitchen, making sure her hand didn't brush his skin when she took his cup. Her thoughts were consumed with images. Lee disappearing, their kissing that was obviously going somewhere before...She was trying to piece it together, why it happened, what exactly happened...

He got up when she started moving into the kitchen staying close enough behind her so that the toes of his boots almost brushed her heels. When she put the cups in the wash basin he stayed behind her as close as he dared without touching her. He went to put his arms on her shoulder but thought better of it and let his arms drop to his side. He leaned forward enough to whisper into her ear. “You’re perfect Ramsey. Don’t ever change that.” He wanted her to understand without having to say it. Maybe if Leander were to tell her why he hesitated she would take it the wrong way. But he really hadn’t felt anything for those women it was just something he’d had to do and now it was haunting him.

SHe smiled at this, washing the dishes to keep her hands busy. "Lee...If you don't tell me what happened, if you dont even know what happened, I'm going to have to assume it was my fault." She contemplated this predicament, noting that he was being very careful not to touch her. "You don't touch me, even now when you seems as fine as you were when we met." She turned so they were stannding so close that electricity hummed between them, the tension built by the inability for either of them to touch the other. "I don't think you're the same man...I'm nearly sure of it, but I can't help but wonder if what you were has anything to do with what's going on now..."

Dejectedly Leander looked down at the floor between his toes a mop of his sandy blonde hair falling across his eyes. “It has everything to do with now.” he said quietly. Leander opened his shirt to show his marks to open air, the black and silver curving and slanting sometimes opposite from his muscles, sometimes perfectly in synch . “Each piece, a cage made of arms, a prison forged from skin, prying fingers I didn’t want anywhere near me. I did it because I was made to but… I didn’t want any of it Ramsey. I didn’t want it. Not until you. he wasn’t making any sense. Even he couldn’t understand half of what came out of his mouth much less what was behind the words. What was there that he could make her understand? Each one of them follows me everywhere, every single voice. Just like this blasted ink on my skin. You deserve more than a broken toy. Her proximity willed him to step closer to her but instead he took a step back hoping she had understood more of what he’d said then he himself had.

"You cannot..." she dropped the dish into the sink. "...You cannot...no...I don't deserve better...don't...you're not..." she was speaking incoherantly. She looked up at him. "Don't..." she shook her head. "You can't leave me now...not now. Not after all we've been through ot be together." She reached out and touches the lines on his chest, ever and always fascinated. "I need you...more now than ever and I can't just...no.." she shook her head, unaware of the wretching sobs coming from her chest. She flung herself against his chest. "Just hold me!" she cried. "I can't stand you...not touching me. It hurts..." she said through her tears. She coulsn't stop.

“Ramsey” he whispered. Tears welling in his eyes., and wrapped his arms around her holding her as tightly as he dared. He lifted one hand and sent out his shadows into the room. They began packing things in his knapsack all their own. A few changes of clothes, money, a journal among other things. “I need to put everything back where it goes in my mind. I need to find who I am. Who I was meant to be before this treacherous path was put in front of me.” He didn’t want to but suddenly his black tears spilled over. Every tear induced moment he’d had in life was linked to the treasure he held in his arms. The one he had to let go of for the greater good. “No matter how far this takes me,” even though it was tearing at him he let go and slipped on his pack without looking at her. He feared that if he did he wouldn’t be able to make himself leave “Just know that I’ll return and that I will always love you.” Without giving himself any more time to change his course of action he stepped away from her and brushed a tear from his face then faded slowly from all existence, using his new power to transport himself elsewhere instantaneously. Because no one should have been able to make a god cry, and he was just leaving his weakness behind driving himself into a darker hole at the same time.

[[to the new thread! doodlaloodaloodaloodaloot*]]