Aces Away

Prey Tell (Or Keep It To Yourself){Accepting Players!}

'What the fuck is a grom?' Darnies wondered as he looked at the girl now just inside the broken window, sitting on what had previously been his chair before everything went to shit. The wards had alerted him once she walked in the door that she was a vampire, and that she held no ill intent towards the bar patrons, just as he knew of the Fae that had stepped outside for a smoke. It's one of the reasons he never warded the whole apartment building after he had set up Saints and Sinners; he had a connections with the wards that was almost a constant conversation of buzzing energy telling him who was coming and going, and if they were likely to cause the wrong kind of trouble.

Chasa was watching his back as he faced the window, just in time for another person to come into the scene, whistling of all things. Sparks lit up her loose muscles as the sudden feeling of Danger Danger DANGER ripped through her, and she was quickly between Darnies and the oncoming man and he got close enough to inspect the damage.

Darnies had tensed as soon as Chasa moved, knowing what her instincts in action looked like and reacting accordingly; he was still looking at the vampire through the window, but now his back was to the Fae on the other side of the open door instead of the new threat. Now at least he was somewhat facing the man and ready for whatever may happen, cane gripped tight but blade latch undone if need be. He and Chasa gave each other a tense glance and Darnies let the broom rest against the brick of the building.

"Yeah, well like I said earlier: Drunk people make for the sorest losers, always lookin' for a cheater when they should be lookin' at their own shitty plays. Always gets 'em aggro and shit," He gave a tilt of the head to the girl before turning his full attention to the possible threat; an older man in a nice suit whose demeanor could probably fool anyone not used to running for their lives from the likes of him.

Chasa kept her eyes on the situation as Darnies addressed him. "Can we help you sir? Carin' for an early mornin' drink?"

Wellington Academy ₊*

Interactions:

Collab with@ImmortalJaskier

Location:

Wellington Rest-Stop

Time:

5:23am

---

A battered Sheriff's truck pulled up the edge of Wellington's rest-stop and idled as the the two people inside turned to each other to speak.

"Don't-"

"I'll-"

The two voices overlap and both men stutter a stop, Mordechai motioning to his father to go first. The gruff looking man smiled and leaned in for a readily returned hug, whispering, "I'll call you every night."

Mordechai's tense frame finally relaxed in his father's grip as he gave out a shaky, "Thanks, Pops." and gripped back just as tight. The two then pulled back from each other and Mordechai removed his seatbelt, rubbing at his eye lazily. "Don't forget to pull over and take a nap at some point, you've already been awake sixteen hours," he added, as he slid out of the truck and turned back to face his dad. "no matter how much coffee you drink on the way, you still need at least 20 minutes of shuteye to keep your focus."

"I promise, Bubbie, now go solve that mystery every old private school seems to have." It was the same words he and his father had exchanged every year since Mordechai joined Wellington Academy, but it made Mordechai laugh all the same. "I love you, kiddo."

"I love you too, Tate." And with that he closed the door, waving his father off and watching him start the twelve and a half hour drive back home. When his father’s truck disappeared around the corner, Chai rolled his shoulders and turned around, coming up short when he saw someone was already there.

---

(Translations: Bubbie= Yiddish term of endearment, the U has the OO pronunciation such as in Hoof or woof.
Tate= Yiddish for Dad, Pops, Papa)

---

Interactions:

Collab with@Aces Away

Location:

Wellington Rest-Stop

Time:

5:13am

---

"Nervous for your first day at school?"

Flashing a smile, Zeke did his best to appear at least somewhat confident as he faced his mother. "I'm seventeen, not seven Ma, I'll be fine" She gave a slightly watery laugh as she pulled him in for a quick, tight hug, before pulling away.

"Yes, you will." There was nothing but confidence in her eyes as she said that and Zeke felt some of his tension drain away. "Bye sweetheart, I love you."

"Love you too, Mamma."

A hand on his shoulder had him turning around just as his father pulled him into a tight hug. "Bel gereeld."

"Elke dag. Lief vir jou, Pa."

His father studied him for a moment, misty eyed, before nodding "En ek jou. Wys daai skool wies baas."

And just like that his parents' Audi drove off, leaving Zeke feeling more alone than he could ever remember being before.

---

(Translations: Bel gereeld.=Call often
Elke dag. Lief vir jou, Pa.= Every day. Love you, Dad.
En ek jou. Wys daai skool wies baas.= And I you. Show that school who's boss.)

---

Time:

5:23am

---

At the sound of a vehicle, brown eyes immediately glanced up from where he was reading on his phone. He wondered briefly if it was the school finally arriving, only to have that theory soundly crushed once he laid eyes on the sheriff's truck that just pulled up. Not wanting to intrude on what was undoubtedly a private moment, Zeke immediately forced all of his attention back to the story he was reading, quietly mouthing the written words. He was just starting to get back in the zone when the rumble of an engine once again made him look up.

The truck was gone. In its place was a young man with pale skin, an athletic, lithe build and messy, pitch black hair styled in an undercut.He seemed to be around Zeke’s age and just like that, all the anxiety that he had successfully been repressing until now reared its ugly head. What was he supposed to do? Should he announce himself? Should he go back to reading? What was the social protocol here? Looking down at his phone, he was sorely tempted to pretend that he didn’t notice anything, then he looked up - brown eyes meeting blue, the boy having turned around during his internal debate.

Nothing for it now...flashing the other boy what he hopes comes off as a smile, Zeke just hoped that he won’t commit some social taboo or grievously insult anyone before even setting foot on school grounds.

Mordechai smiled softly at the other boy and made his way to the bench. The boy didn’t look familiar to him and given the size of the student body that would be almost impossible, but he also didn’t look young enough to be an incoming freshman. He must have been coming in as a junior or senior, and looked about as nervous as could be.

"Hey there, I’m Mordechai, one of the Seniors," he greeted, holding out his hand for a shake. “Are you new to Wellington?”

"Is it that obvious?" Taking Mordechai’s hand, Zeke shook it, forcing his body to remain loose and casual instead of the tight ball of tension it wants to become. "Nice to meet you, Mordechai. I’m Ezekiel, I just transferred here."

As an afterthought, he also added "Junior." before taking back his hand.

”I’ve seen that look on newcomers before,” Mordechai laughed, pulling his hand back into his space and stuffing it in his pocket, the other still holding his duffle bag. Just as he was about to set it down, the coach arrived, so instead he nodded his head towards it while looking to the other. ”C’mon Ezekiel, we’ll have plenty of time to get to know each other on the ride.” Then he got in first, nodding and smiling to the driver like he always does.

Giving Mordechai a nod, he quickly stood up to follow his lead. Giving the driver a smile, he paused before entering, taking a moment to inspect the coach. It was long, black, fancier than he thought possible for a school vehicle and made him wonder once again how exactly he managed to get accepted into a place like Wellington. He’ll admit that he’s a pretty good writer and all, but - forcibly pulling himself from those thoughts, Zeke reinforced his smile and followed Mordechai into the coach.

Aaaand it was even fancier on the inside. Ezekiel didn’t even bother to cover up his slightly disbelieving expression as he took his seat. "Is this really school property?"

Mordechai laughed again. ”Bet your ass. Everything about this school is gonna give you that doe-eyed look for a while, trust me.” He took the moment before the other had entered to really get a look at him. He had dark hair and deep brown eyes behind his glasses. He had a grip on a book and was definitely on the more nervous side, though worked well to hide it. Ezekiel was also a bit taller than himself, which Mordechai acknowledged easily as he was somewhere in the middle of the upperclassmen heightwise and had never had issue with others being taller than him. Hell, Oliver had a whole head on him at six foot four.

As the coach pulled off on its journey, he picked the conversation back up. ”So what cottage did you get put in? Maybe I can give you a heads-up on your housemates.”

A little of the tension left Zeke upon hearing that. One of the main causes for his nervousness is not knowing what to expect, so any information Mordechai can give him - even if it’s just something inconsequential - means a lot. Meeting the other’s striking blue eyes, he gave his most grateful smile. "That would actually be really amazing if you could." Quickly opening his book, he pulled out a folded piece of paper from where it had been wedged between the pages, before shutting it again.

"According to the notice they sent, I’m going to be in Coleus and my roommate will be someone called Jordan Dom." A swift glance at the paper reassured him that he got the details right - as if he hadn’t basically memorised it already. "I hope I didn’t butcher the pronunciation?" One of the concerns he’s had since receiving the notice.

”Nope, you got it,” Chai grinned. “You’ll like JD, he’s a good guy; we work out together every now and then. He’s got his ticks just like everyone does but it’s pretty easy to work things through with him in my experience. He can definitely be a neat freak when he wants to be,” he laughed, but it turned into a yawn halfway through. “Chali is in your cabin if I recall correctly; she’s sweet if not a little chaotic, and if you got any problems with bullies you could definitely come to her or me. High chance the youngest one, Bee, will want you to record a skate move every now and then. She’s a good kid with good energy around her.”

Housemates spoken of, Mordechai tilted his head and thought of what he knew of Venetia, speaking up just as they reached the tunnel. ”Hmm, your cottage leader is not someone you want to test when it comes to breaking curfew, and she has those ‘eyes in the back of my head’ vibes.”

Ezekiel listened intently while Mordechai talked, nodding here and there, taking careful note of every person mentioned and relaxing a bit more with every piece of information given to him. Knowing a little of what to expect, helps him to actually believe that he’ll be able to survive in this new environment. “Thank you.” Hopefully, those words will be enough to properly convey how much he appreciates it.

Then they passed through the tunnel and he went even more ‘doe-eyed’ than he did with the coach.

“Damn...” The mural lining the tunnel wall was, put simply, astounding. The colour and intricate detail just begged for attention and Zeke promised himself that once he got the chance he’ll come back here to look at it properly, maybe take some pictures to show his parents.

Almost as soon as they entered it, the tunnel ended, opening up to a dirt path, showcasing a clear cut through the forest. Turning back towards Chai, Zeke grinned. “You weren’t kidding earlier, this place is unreal.”

”Yep, real fairytale imagery around here,” he knocked lightly on the window with his knuckle. The coach came to a stop and Mordechai rose up from his slumped position, taking his duffle that the driver already had out for him and giving him a soft thanks.

---

Time:

6:00am

---

”Well, here we are!” He pointed toward the gate and statues, making his way in. ”You’re about an hour early for the new students, but it’s happened before. I’ve got to get to my cottage and unpack the boxes I left of my stuff,” he dug into his pockets and pulled out a receipt and permanent marker, scribbling on it before handing it towards Ezekiel. It read:

Chai

740-673-0061

”Feel free to text me if you get bored or lonely around here, yeah?”

Taking the number, it was all Zeke could do not to act like a dumbstruck fool - he was not expecting this - but that didn’t stop him from smiling brightly at Chai as he gave a nod. “Will do.”

After they separated, Zeke carefully placed the number inside his book before grabbing his luggage and settling down by the Athena statue to wait for his cottage head.

Mordechai took off towards his cottage with a soft smile, still tired but feeling lighter than he had when his dad pulled off.

---

Interactions:

@Kautalya@Rithas

Location:

Begonia Cottage

Time:

7:10am

---

Having greeted Elaina shortly after arriving to the cottage, Mordechai collected his boxes of possessions they had put in a storage closet when he left for summer; he headed up to Begonia 3 to set up, knowing he would never bring everything out of the boxes if he didn’t do it now.

He had been at it for the past hour give or take, and he was starting to feel the length of the drive. He was contemplating a nap as a reward for getting up his investigation board- which he now had a little curtain to pull over it as he was going to have a freshman roomie, gotta maintain that youthful innocence and all- when he heard one of the softest knocks since Elaina. Oh boy.

He had crossed the room and grabbed the door handle when he heard Matt’s voice through the wood, causing him to huff out an exasperated laugh at the junior’s antics. He opened the door as Matt asked the kid his name and, oh jesus, this kid was small, he wasn’t expecting that. He quickly lowered the volume he was about to reply with that and tried to soften his tone.

“Nem Zich a vaneh, Doyle,” he spoke with a light glare, turning to his roomie. ”I’m Mordechai, but you can call me Chai or Mor if you’d like. Don’t let Matt put the wrong idea into your head; on the contrary, you can definitely believe me when I tell you that he loves staying up for as long as possible and solving mysteries just like I do.”

He threw a smirk in Matt’s direction.

---

Translation-Nem Zich a vaneh(Yiddish)= Go jump in the lake

Prey Tell (Or Keep It To Yourself){Accepting Players!}

Darnies looked over his cards at the drunken man across from him, smirking at him and his friend's confident attitudes. Knowing that those grins will fall in a few seconds made him want to laugh. Darnies leaned his chair back even further, his arm dangling over the back as he took his time. The man he was playing looked like he was going to either start sweating or throwing punches the longer Darnies didn't do something, so he decided to make it a last just a bit longer.

"I recommend you fold, friend." He said, never loosing his posture or smirk. The man looked to him in disbelief before looking to his two friends and laughing as he waved his cards.

"Yer the one gonna be wantin' to fold, boy. And I ain't yer friend." He said, drunken words slurring his speech. He threw his cards face up on the table. "Full House." He declared, reaching for the money before Darnies' chair legs slamming the ground made him freeze, startled. The boy leaned his weight on the table and sighed as he stood.

"Shame we ain't friends," He spoke up, flipping his cards and dropping them to the table, swiping the money in the process and stuffing it in his jacket's inner pocket. "'Cause, y'see, I share with my friends." The red hearts in the Royal Flush reflected the older man's complexion.

"Damn...Damn! Fuck!" He growled, swiping the cards off the table and onto the ground in rage.

"No, it's DarnDarn. If you're gonna say someone's nickname, say it right. And there are kids in this bar so you should really avoid sweari-" The man grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him forward, causing him to lose the support he had from the table and pinwheel to gain his balance back. The bar started to quiet as the other patrons took notice of what was happening.

"You cheated somehow you little shit, now yer gonna give me back my fuckin' money or my boys and I'll-"

"You'll what." Darnies replied, cutting him off and grabbing his wrist. His dark eyes showed no mercy as he grabbed the man's thumb and bent it back until the man was kneeling in a submissive position to lessen the pain. "I don't like threats, Hamor," He swore, keeping the man in place. "An' I don't like sore losers, either." The whimper of pain that followed must have woken his friends from their stupor, because one hauled back and threw a punch at Darnies seconds later, forcing the boy to duck and grab his cane before dancing out of the way, but not before the Witch had made sure the ringleader would have a cast for his thumb.

"Get 'im!" The man on the floor growled, cradling his hand to his chest. Darnies held his hand up, signalling off the other patrons who stood up to help him, and swung his cane to catch Man 2 in the jaw. His head snapped to the side, but the satisfaction was short lived as man 3 football tackled him, knocking the air out of his lungs and knocking the both of them right through the bar's front window. Darnies closed his eyes and braced for impact on the cobblestone. The unforgiving ground didn't come, but solid arms did. Shoulders cradled in one of these arms, he looked over to see Man 3 in a choke hold of the other, and getting redder by the second.

"Hey, Chasa." He grinned up at the woman, and she somehow manage to look both concerned and judgmental.

"What did you do?"

"Nothing! Sore losers at poker, is all. You mind standing by the door so they don't leave yet?" He questioned, grin still in place even as blood seeped out the corner of his mouth. The Golem sighed but nodded, pushing Man 3 ahead of her and into the bar where the first two cowered upon seeing her intimidating figure fill up the doorway with Darnies at her side. He leaned against her for support as he picked his cane up once again.

"I hope you guys didn't lose all your money to me." Darnies mocked lightly, dusting off his torn jeans and only suceeding in smearing blood onto them. Chasa grinned and spoke up.

"That's right," She spoke, causing them to flinch. "Because you're paying for Akseli's new window." She smiled at them, crossing her arms and nodding to the Man behind the bar, who was staring at the scene while sliding on his brass knuckles with a bloodthirsty grin. His Angel, who was sitting at the bar and hasn't looked up from his book, just tilted his head and gave the men a quick glance. They watched together as the men handed the money over the counter to Akseli before scurrying out as Chasa stepped aside, catching Darnies as her sudden support disappeared. She gave him a friendly glare.

"And you," She spoke, causing him to looking at her. "You're paying for my new groceries." It was his turn to flinch as he turned to look outside. Among all the broken glass, there were two brown bags, one with milk spilling out of the container, the other with eggs scattered around it. He groaned in dismay.

"There goes my winnings," He whined as everyone in the bar returned their attention to their tables. At Chasa's small glare he held up his hands. "I'm gonna pay for it, don't worry."

She rolled her eyes and took him to one of the booths against the back wall, grabbing the bar rags lazily held out by Akseli as she passed. "My instincts said you were in danger, so I didn't even get the chance to put my groceries down before I was moving in your direction. Guess you were in a lesser kind of danger," she looked over to the broken window, then back to Darnies where he was casually sliding a particularly large piece of glass out of his arm before he wrapped the area with one of the rags. With anyone else, that probably would have made her sick to watch, but she'd seen Darnies get in plenty of fights since he created her, and they often end with some kind of glass being shattered and making its way into his skin, so she just sighed instead, especially when he left all the other smaller pieces in his skin and just held another rag to make sure he didn't bleed on the furniture. "This is the fifth time Akseli's window has been broken by you."

"Hey!" Darnies frowned indignantly. "It's not my fault drunks think they're untouchable in a card game, I play fair! At least I never play with the regulars, I'd have claws and teeth in me instead of glass," he huffed, causing Chasa to laugh. He smiled at her and got out of the booth, limping over to the broom that Akseli and Aharon seemed to keep against the back wall just for him. He made his way out the bar door and began sweeping up his mess. Chasa trailed after him and leaned against the door frame.

"I heard there's a detective going around trying to question everyone in the apartments." Chasa spoke casually, trying to meet his eyes. He stopped sweeping for a second before continuing with a heavy sigh.

"I knew I should have warded the whole building and not just our apartments," he spoke quietly. "it takes a lot of energy but at least a Hunter wouldn't have been able to sneak in and kill Grayson without any of us knowing." They both went quiet and he grasped his Magen David necklace, whispering a blessing for the werewolf that had been killed in apartment 2-M, just a few doors down from the Duo. He then looked up to the early morning sun trying to break through storm clouds and sighed. "Well he's gonna end up pretty empty handed, none of us talk to cops, they can't help."

"Doesn't mean he won't try, DarnDarn." Chasa warned quietly, knowing they were both aware of the risks that came with cops snooping around.

"Damned if I don't know it." Darnies grumbled as he got back to work, the two now silent.

---

Translation: Hamor= Hebrew: Jackass

Prey Tell (Or Keep It To Yourself){Accepting Players!}

@pintofwhiskeyok, I'm on mobile until tomorrow so I'll get it started then. Hop in whenever you're ready! :)

Prey Tell (Or Keep It To Yourself){Accepting Players!}

@pintofwhiskey once your character is set we can get started :)

Prey Tell (Or Keep It To Yourself){Accepting Players!}

@MelodicElement@Grey Omen both of then are great! Go ahead and throw them up in the character tab!

Prey Tell (Or Keep It To Yourself){Accepting Players!}

@pintofwhiskeyno worries, and that's fine! I really like that idea actually

Prey Tell (Or Keep It To Yourself)

Bump!

Prey Tell (Or Keep It To Yourself){Accepting Players!}

Bump

Prey Tell (Or Keep It To Yourself){Accepting Players!}

That all sounds great! I'm perfectly with fine with having variances on species