Mictlantecuhtli

[TragicTrees]

@Kitschington

Cities were, generally, very diverse places, with a lot of different people. It was to be expected; they were basically mixing pots. This could be a good thing, in some cases. In others, it could be quite the opposite. It really depended.

At the moment, what was currently happening in an old parking garage could be filed under 'Bad Things Done by Bad People'. There was no wondering if they really meant to do harm, or if it was just something they'd back out of later. No, the place was currently filled to the brim with absolute nut-jobs, intent on summoning some Aztec God of Death, or something of the like.

This would probably be less horrible if it wasn't for the circumstances under which the summoning had to happen. Of course, there was no written way on how to summon the thing, but with enough guesswork, and studying the temples, you could possibly piece it together. And, surprisingly, the nut-jobs managed that much. So, here they were.

They were about a group of 5. Well, 5 there on purpose. The 6th was not there on their own free will. They happened to be the unlucky victim for the night. Because, you see, what these 5 morons in black clothing needed a sacrifice for this whole thing. And the girl, a young woman with blonde hair and bright blue eyes, happened to be around when they searched.

They were fully convinced that summoning this God would work. And, well, no one could exactly say they were wrong to believe so. There had been strange sightings popping up all over. To be fair, though, a God was a bit much. Sure, ghosts, possibly. But Gods? That was a different level.

The group had used a small carving in the center of their display, but the rest was cheaply made up with red spray paint. The lady was on a table, currently knocked out and tied up. They stood around, murmuring to one another, and trying to decide who would do the 'honors'.

They also had, foolishly, assumed no one else would be around these parts this late at night. This is another thing they'd be wrong about, and that could turn out quite unfortunately for them.

 

[Kitschington]

Well this was... certainly not what he'd been expecting...
Months of research... pouring over notes and data, contacting colleagues and fellow professors, tracking down information previously thought lost... All for... this? A small smattering of hoodlums, dressed up like boogymen, centered in some dirty, abandoned parking garage. To say that Vidal was disappointed was... a gross understatement. Though he did have to admire the strange group for actually endeavouring to get a live sacrifice, the fact that there was little to no effort put into the surroundings or their display was just... Well, the young man really couldn't find the appropriate words. Grey eyes observing the whole scene from afar, the young professor had been tracking the group ever since they'd grabbed the young woman. He intended to call the police, of course. He had to. But... He just wanted to see this cult in action. After all, it wasn't every day that someone got the opportunity to watch this sort of display. Just think of the articles that he could write about this entire experience!

Practically shimmying with excitement, Vidal's gaze went back to the scene... He needed to get closer. Just a little bit. He could see some of the carvings, but most of the markings were uninteligible from where he stood. So, shifting a bit forward under the veil of darkness, the tall, but slight young man made his way across the ruined space. Unfortunately, with his eyes straight ahead--completely fixed on the cult's display--he didn't quite notice the pesky piece of rubble in the way of his foot. Tripping over the rather hard piece of cement, Vidal fell, rather unceremoniously, onto the ground below. The notepad he'd been scribbling into flapped onto the floor, loose papers scattering wildly. His pen skittered away from him with a clatter, disappearing into the darkness ahead. Eyes widening a little, Vidal swore to himself. That pen was expensive! And his notes were everywhere now! He started clamouring to gather them... until he remembered where he was. Grey eyes going over to meet the cult, whose attention might have been drawn by the rather abrupt interruption, Vidal's breath caught. ... At the very least, things were probably about to become more interesting. Hopefully interesting enough for his thesis...​

 

[TragicTrees]

At this point, one member, who could assumed to be the lead, had already managed to draw blood from the girl, which was now dritone. ontothe display. Not kill her, of course. Why? Because the professor had, after tripping, immediately caught their attention. The group had whipped around, the lead even managing to drop the red-stained knife on their 'perfect' display, which, admittedly, looked practically like all the other graffiti littering the place.

There was a pause, where they just seemed to stare at Vlad, before they began to chatter. Their eyes didn't leave him, of course, and that would soon turn out to be a bad thing. But, they had no idea, and were more concerned with the man in front of them.

"Someone followed us? He followed us! He's seen everything!"

"What do we do? We can't let him go."

"We have to do something with him, can't keep him around forever!"

"There's a ritual we need a fresh kidney for! And others!"

Their chattered slowly got less worried and more excited as they began to go over the possibilities, going on about more summonings and spells in a more hushed tone.

 

[Kitschington]

Vidal looked towards the group with the same dumbfounded expression for quite some time, before realising that he should probably do something to defend himself. Or the girl, at least. His notes could wait for later... Well, in reality, they couldn't. He had a dissertation that he wanted to finish as quickly as possible. He was so close to being published that he could taste it! And this story would make such a wonderful foreword... If he survived it, of course. Snapping out of his revelry, the man finally got to his feet. Retrieving his pen as quickly as he could, he started to back away from the scene. He clutched his notes to his chest and decided to make a declaration of some kind. "Ah... You lot. You'd better be on your way quickly! I've already phoned the authorities and they're on their way to apprehend all of you! It'd be best if you dropped that knife and ran!", Feeling quite confident in his bluff, the young professor nodded firmly as he continued to back away from them. His back collided with one of the cement columns that stood in the middle of nowhere. His heart jumped into his throat as he suddenly remembered just how far he was from the door... He could make a run for it himself, but the idea of leaving the girl to her fate was pretty distasteful. It would be best if the cult left first.​

 

[TragicTrees]

The leader tossed the knife a bit, seeming amused with the prospect that this......not very threatening person was threatening them in the first place. The fact the man was backing away sort of took away from the authorities comment, and the man still looked frightened. Besides, the leader figured that once the thing they had worked so hard on summoning came, they could easily avoid the authorities. It was just a matter of waiting, wasn't it?

They took a step forwards, towards Vidal "Really? Really? The authorities are coming? Well, that won't stop us!" They cackled, liking the feeling of being in control for once, "Do you actually th-"

They were abruptly cut off by someone clearing their throat behind them, which wouldn't have been so unusual if it weren't for the fact that none of the members had done it. So, naturally, the attention turned from the professor to the 'Altar', where the noise came from. What they found was pretty much proof that whatever they had done had done its job, and actually managed to summon something.

Or, well, someone. There was a humanoid figure standing behind the cheap plastic table. It had a colorful skull mask on, covering the eyes and face down to the mouth. Messy dark brown hair was visible, as well as a beige skin-tone. They seemed to be fairly tall, donning a brightly colored cape that seemed to be made of feathers, a white shirt, black pants, and brown sandals that looked ready to fall apart in seconds. In their right hand, they held a black staff, with a skull perched on top. Other than the staff, the outfit contrasted the situation greatly.

"Boys, boys," The figure began, voice seeming to be male, "I do apprieciate the effort. Really! I do. But......this is quite the shoddy display. And that's the most I can say of it." He glanced at the scene "I'll be honest with you, this is absolute rubbish. The LAST time I was summoned, they at least put effort into the display. You know," he tapped the ground "Actual carvings. Not paint. And, also," he gestured around the room "They had a NICE place to do it. Lastly, they actually killed the sacrifice." He went on to gesture to the women, obviously finding it distasteful "I used to have rituals, you know! Great things, a whole temple! It was MAGNIFICENT. Yet, here I am, back on this horrible excuse for a planet, and I only get a living human being! Living!"

The cult currently seemed to be in shock, and the figure stepped around to go over to them, observing what was happening "And you also get caught! I was going to wait til you finished, to see if you had anything to make this excuse for a summoning better, but obviously that isn't going to happen. Because, no, we can't have nice things, can we? No good old sacrifices that are actually carried through. Why would we have that? Honestly, I'm more impressed by the man that caught you then you dimwits in black outfits. At least he wasn't being completely idiotic."

The man sighed, leaning on his staff "And, after even trying to summon me, putting effort into a summoning- Though, you could have put more in -you're STILL dumbfounded. What is so surprising? From the looks of it, you seemed to think this would work." He scoffed, his free hand on his hip.

The leader fumbled with his words, before quickly kneeling on the ground. The others soon followed suit, and the quiet murmuring began once more, all attention that was on Vidal lost.

 

[Kitschington]

Vidal had opened his mouth to rebutt the leader's point, but before he could get much of a word in, their discourse was interrupted by someone else... whose presence was so surprising that it practically stopped time. Before long, all air that had been in the room seemed to flood away, along with any of the threatening posturing that the group of black-swaddled cluckers had put fourth. Vidal was truthfully thankful that the attention was removed from him... But his own attention was completely captivated. This man's outfit... It would have just been strange to some. Just the apparel of some eccentric circus performer. But, to Vidal--and to the cult members as well, obviously--it meant so much more. Eyes wide, the young professor was stricken in place... but only for a moment. His eyes narrowed at the strange figure as he started to step forward. Completely forgetting where he was--among a group that had nearly murdered an innocent young woman--Vidal stepped passed the nameless cult members and stood in front of the nameless figure. Notepad in his hands, his pen worked furiously as he wrote down every aspect of the man in front of him.

Writing away, he couldn't help chuckling to himself every now and then, before finally giving a loud laugh. "My word! This is... This is just fantastic! I didn't know you lot would be able to afford a magician as well! ... A bit odd, given how serious this sort of summoning is supposed to be, but I suppose if you want to keep your cult members you'd have to make the show as convincing as possible, wouldn't you?" Chuckling again, Vidal was absolutely captivated. "I do have to admit his gripe about the display is quite right, though. You all should have at least invested in a better space. More open. Perhaps with seats. That's how you keep an audience coming back. This poor man has absolutely nothing to work with in conditions like this... Ahh.. I apologise." Realising that he was completely ignoring the costumed magician, Vidal gave a small bow, deciding to introduce himself to the 'cult'. "I am Professor Vidal Soledad D'Cruze. Professor of Ancient Mesoamerican Anthropology and Humanities... I must say, you all really had me convinced for a moment." Vidal chuckled again, finding his mistakes all the more amusing. "This is all just... absolutely fascinating. I swear, I never thought I'd find anyone that bore more love in their heart for study of the Aztec pantheon. But you all are certainly the closest!" He turned his attention back to the magician again. "And you, sir. Are you simply hired to be here or are you a part of this 'cult' as well? ... Don't be shy, I know you have to have some regard for the culture to get dressed in an outfit like that" Looking to him with wide, innocent eyes, Vidal smiled politely, hoping to find out as much as he could about what went into the makings of this scene. He was usually so alone in his pursuit of knowledge... But here he'd found a possibility of more colleagues! Perhaps even friends! It was all so exciting!​

 

[TragicTrees]

The man just stood there for a second, seeming a bit....confused. But, after he slowly grinned, and then burst out laughing "H-holy cow, you're a riot, kiddo!" he said, seeming absolutely thrilled "A regard for the culture, hm? A regard? That's something, right there!" His laughing broke off into small fits of giggling, and he held a hand over his mouth "See, boys? This is how you GREET someone! With some good old fashioned humor! Man, I like you already, kid." He prodded Vidal's chest with the end of his staff "I was worried this would be a horrible trip!"

The leader of the cult spluttered a bit, before speaking up "M-Mictlantecuhtli, sir, that's.....he's a sacrifice! For you!" They slowly rose to their feet "And, and, he's disrespectful, of all things! He should be kneeling!"

The man snorted in amusement "You were gonna kill him? His innocence is cute. It's like someone took the essence of small, helpless animals and combined it with a human soul. I mean, the girl over there, I could understand. Oh, and, you aren't kneeling, soooo.....should I go ahead and assume that you aren't being respectful either?" He tutted a bit, shaking his head "For shame! My expectations were low, but this is something else."

One of the other members frowned "......This can't be him. I don't think we did it right. We.....we should have tried something else!" They said, rising to their feet with a bit of a stumble. The others seemed to agree, doing the same.

The man scowled "Now, THAT'S rude. You were the ones pulling this in the first place." he said, twirling the staff a bit "What? I haven't been interacting with people since a while back! I'm allowed to talk how I like."

 

[Kitschington]

Vidal looked at the staff that he'd been touched with... a little perturbed. The shirt he wore wasn't exactly cheap, after all. Bright white and starched to perfection, it contrasted with the tea-coloured tone of his skin and the dark black of his hair. His suspenders, which were thoughtfully attached to his pants, were equally clean, despite how dark they were against the white of his shirt. All in all, the man looked like something out of the 1920s. His bowtie, large and purple, cemented that fact, giving the man an almost comically classic style. All he needed was a flat-topped hat and a handlebar moustache and he'd look as if he were off for a night of croquet at the Gatsby abode. He quickly dusted off the area on his chest, but continued to smile, not wanting to appear rude. Hearing the cult leader behind him stutter breathlessly, he arched a brow at their exchange.

"Ah! Mictlantecuhtli? That's what who your costume is supposed to be emulating? ... I suppose that explains the mask. Though the rest of your attire seems a little odd. Shouldn't you be naked? ... I know, modesty and all that, but I suppose you could wear a loincloth or something similar. Perhaps more feathers in the front. Or, even better, another skull!" Critiquing the 'god's' outfit thoughtfully, Vidal hoped he could get the cult to listen. He turned his attention back to them. "Now. This was all quite fun and all, but I do think that we should give some more thought to the space next time... Some place outside, for starters. Along with that, we should also give some thought into investing more money into this. Instead of paint, we could use actual carvings. I'd be more than happy to donate some of my own!" Vidal started to walk around the small circle they'd drawn, critiquing more and more of their work, but only out of love for the idea. He listed things for a while, before realising that he'd been talking for far too long. He went a bit sheepish. "Ah... I apologise. You all probably have more than enough things to think about now that your ritual's been ruined by my intrusion. If you'd like, I can go back to the shadows and we can start again from the top? One more time! And more feeling from the leader this time, I could hardly hear your incantations!"​

 

[TragicTrees]

The man followed Vidal, looking absolutely gleeful "Oh, loin clothes are old! I only kept the cape an the mask." he said, grinning widely "Now, now, you're a professor? You like this sort of thing? I know how to put on a real show, you know, much better than these idiots! Would you like to see? No need to head back into the shadows! Of course, I'm not actually doing a summoning- another would be quite lame, don't you agree? I think a offering would be much better! I love a good offering ceremony."

The man was absolutely delighted that this guy was clueless. He fully intended to do this 'show' whether the guy said yes or not. It was good payback, to show these insulting people that if they were about to do something, they shouldn't half-ass it. That said, he wasn't actually a god- a great facade, the Aztecs didn't suspect a thing. Of course, that had been the race that had seen the Spanish in shiny outfits and proclaimed them gods, so it wasn't very impressive. The tiny tin men brought around their demise, which was a absolute shame. He loved the rituals and things they did for him, it was a darling time in history.

And, they put more work into this than these bozos. Well, they wouldn't be around much longer, either, so he supposed that was one thing they had in common with the Aztecs. He placed an arm around the professor, not paying mind to the whole 'personal bubble' rule humans seemed to have. It wasn't as if he was hurting the man, so, the complaints would be ignored.

"Come, come! Front row seat, you can watch! I, myself, have done many studies on rituals, I think you'll find this one interesting. Oh, boys? Boys! Please, do you mind sending one of you into the middle of the circle you made? The awful spraypaint one. I want to impress this professor with something interactive!" He began, reaching out with the cane to push one of them forwards. The leader, being the one he pushed, stumbled into the circle. "Perfect!" The man glanced at Vidal "Shall we begin?"

 

[Kitschington]

Again, Vidal found himself a little... perturbed at the sudden amount of touching that was going on. His appearance was so clean for a good reason! He prided himself on it. Being as young as he was and bearing the title of 'Professor' caused a great deal of dissonance to most people he met. 'But you're so young!' 'Don't make up titles for yourself!' 'Have some respect for your colleagues!' They would always say to him... With a frustrated sigh, he dusted himself again where the man had touched him. His smile was still polite and he tried his best not to point out the magician's intrusion. Instead, his eyes simply widened at the prospect that he put before him. "An offering? That sounds fantastic! I'd love to see your interpretation.", removing his notepad from the breastpocket he kept it in, he had his pen at the ready, part of him wondering just how much this man was being paid. He was obviously an enthusiast for this sort of thing. Surely if the cult could afford him, they should be able to afford a better interpretation of their circle. Pig's blood, at least.​

 

[TragicTrees]

"Alright, alright! A man of adventure." The man grinned, then turned to the leader "Lay down, boy-o!"

The leader paused, before slowly doing as he was told. He seemed a bit frightened at the moment. The man walked over, kneeling down next to them "Remember, kids. Don't try this at home! And by that, I mean don't half-ass it. The LAST bit we went through was a disgrace to your society. Even early cultures did it better!" he chided, tossing his cape and staff off the the side and grabbing the knife

Gore

He raised the knife, before slamming it down with force, enough to allow it to go deep into the leader's chest, who emitted a scream. The man just hummed a bit, as if he was just doing a normal job, and carved through the flesh, around the heart area. At this point, blood had entered the lungs, and the leader's screams had been replaced with gurgling as the blood came up and their body shook a bit. This didn't seem to stop the 'magician', as he went on to finish up, the cracking of bones heard in the process. Not much could be seen from the angle at which the crowd was at, but the ribcage of the leader was now completely broken. Which, to the man, was a mighty shame. But, it had to be done. He opened the chest cavity with little to no caution, and reached in.

The next thing the people would see would be the man turning, a bloody heart being held up in his hand, grinning as if he was a school boy holding up a science fair award and saying 'look, mom, I won!'. He was covered in the blood, which was still gushing from the nearby body. It stained his white shirt, and it was soon clear why he had tossed the cane and cloak to the side.

He stood up, tossing the heart up and catching it "And that, kids, is a ritual! I'd prefer the heart beating, but beggars can't be choosers!" He said, ignoring the horrified looks of the other members as they debated whether to run or not.

He did a mock bow, one bloody hand behind his back, while the other offered the heart to Vidal "Here you go!" he said in a pleased tone, as if he aimed to impress the other man with this.

((I'm still working on writing gore well ^^; Also, tell me if I do anything you don't like!))

 

[Kitschington]

[ ooc: Ohh that was fantastic.. I love this guy. xD And, not to worry, I'm the last person that'll complain about gore. You don't even have to tag it if you don't want to. ]

Vidal watched silently, writing away in his notepad with the same fervour that he had before. In fact, it seemed more feverish than it had been. He only paused when he heard the leader of the cult scream, quite abruptly. Grey eyes wide, staring ahead at the scene--or what little he could see of it--Vidal couldn't help silently complementing the leader of the cult for his performance. He'd chastised him before, but the man could obviously act when he needed to. He almost wondered where this aptitude had been hiding before, because his incantations had truly been piss poor. Going back to his writing, Vidal noted a small reminder in the margins, reminding himself to request the phone numbers of everyone here. He knew that his students weren't the most enthusiastic bunch. An invitation to a display like this would be just what he needed to shake things up over the next semester!

Once the heart was produced, Vidal couldn't be more delighted. He smiled wildly, making a few more notes before taking his notepad and placing it back into his breast pocket. He looked at the prop in front of him, then over to the other members of the cult, all of whom seemed absolutely terrified. With a small laugh, Vidal waved off their performances and exploded into applause. "Bravo, my friend. Splendid! Simply fantastic! Whatever they're paying you simply isn't enough..." Seeing him present the heart in front of him, Vidal waved his hand a little in front of himself. "Oh no, I can't take it. It looks far too messy... Quite a handsome prop, though. ...Did you make this yourself?" Looming a little closer, Vidal observed the heart, which was still and slightly oozing. It looked absolutely convincing... So much so that Vidal couldn't help looking passed the man, to the leader whom was still lying on the floor behind him. Blood was still pooling, thick and shiny, slowly inching its way towards the nearest crevice in the decrepit floor. Arching a brow at the leader's refusal to get up, Vidal's laugh turned a bit nervous for a second.... But he simply waved it off. These people seemed very committed to their act, so he owed it to that fact.

"Sir, is there any chance that you would be interested in performing such a demonstration for my class? I think my students would truly enjoy your charisma!" Vidal smiled wildly, hoping he hadn't offended the man by not playing along with the prop. Vidal would've gladly taken it if he were wearing a darker colour.​

 

[TragicTrees]

((Ah, okay, thanks!))

This seemed to only raise the mans, who should referred to as Mic at this point, ego. He preened a bit, standing up straight with the heart still at hand "Oh, while that would be fantastic, I only perform for small audiences. But, if you want another example......well! We still have four more people to go!" he said, tossing the heart off to the side. It landed on the concrete, leaving a red mark and a squishing noise. He would pick it up later; not using it would be a shame, with it being so fresh and all.

He was absolutely ecstatic that this professor was enjoying this, though. He did love getting complimented, though the little human seemed to think it was all fake. That only really added to his amusement, though. It also allowed him to pick through the offenders one by one easily, without the man running off. He wouldn't want that; he was hilarious! Mic didn't like to just let entertainment like that go.

"So, what do you say? A few more?" He asked with a grin, rocking back and forth on his heels. This was simply fantastic. Riveting! He hadn't done any of this in a while, and it felt good; Sure, watching others do it was fun, but this? Up close and personal? That was what made it great.

 

[Kitschington]

Vidal noticed the magician seemed to be quite excited by his work. That sort of dedication only made the professor smile more. He loved it when he met people that were as passionate as he was. Whether it was about something as simple as being a bellhop or something as fascinating as this, small fascinations truly made the world as wonderful as it was. Vidal had always been a bit of an obsessive sort, so he supposed that he just... gravitated towards others with that type of passion. It was so difficult to find anyway. He smiled again, though he frowned when he saw the man simply toss the prop away. He supposed that the magician must have had more, though... Or, perhaps he needed to discard it so that he could produce it once again, sight unseen. Nodding along with this hypothesis, the professor chuckled. "Of course! ... Though, I'm not certain what your rates are. Hopefully you aren't going over time or anything... .... Ahh, regardless, I'll make certain you're properly rewarded for this! A good show deserves a far better tip!" Vidal nodded again, gaze turning over to the remaining people. He was a little surprised to see them looking so dumbfounded. Surely they were a part of the show...

 

[TragicTrees]

((I won't be color coating speech til tomorrow; I've switched to my tablet and its difficult to do!))

"W-wait!" One of the members said quickly "W-we, w-we can just leave now! We're sorry! We'll do better!" They had opted to beg now, not wanting to be disposed of like the leader. Which wasn't all that hard to get; it had seemed painful.

Mic had to admit, the apologies got him to simmer down a bit. At least they had some sense. Oh, well; he'd let them off the hook for now. Besides, anymore and his new entertainment might get suspicious, and he couldn't be having that. This was the most excitement he has had in years, and the humorous professor was the main cause. So, he wanted to keep him around, and completely oblivious to this.

The human also praised his work, so that was a plus. He had to admit, praise really did get to him. It just felt nice, almost like what the Aztecs did for him, but sincere and not out of fear. So, that was yet another factor of why he'd keep the man around.

He waved a dismissive hand at the crew, shrugging "Fine, fine! We'll have to do this again some other time. Remember, no slacking!" He said, and, within moments of looking relieved, the members quickly retreated out of the area.

Mic glanced behind him. Now, he needed to dispose of the body and the girl, and he was done. Oh, and make excuses to the professor boy

 

[Kitschington]

[ ooc: A-okay by me! ]

Writing to happily and quietly to himself, Vidal was completely content with the world at the moment. Though something did continue to bother him. The fact that the leader had still yet to move was actually beginning to get a bit disturbing. He knew that they were all dedicated to the craft, but he was beginning to think that the poor man may have actually screamed himself into unconsciousness. Moving to check on him, Vidal was abruptly stopped when he noticed the magician negotiating with the group of cult members. Vidal gave a small chuckle. The group must have realised that they only had the funds to pay the man for one of these demonstrations. Rather than argue with them--since he wasn't the person footing the bill for all of this--Vidal simply smiled and watched the cult members go. Watching them leave, Vidal was suddenly reminded of his note! "Ah! Wait! Wait, I need your numbers so that we can do this again! Wait! ... Ah... Darn... " Realising the group was long gone now, Vidal sighed. He supposed that he could just find them again at a later date. He'd been observing the group for a while, so the odds were fairly good that he would be able to predict the next time they decided to get together. For now, he decided to focus on the few people that were remaining. He smiled at the magician, quickly realising that he hadn't really gotten the other half of his introduction. "Ah! Sir.. Would you mind if I had your name? And.. what is it that you would call your profession exactly? I had taken to calling you a 'magician', but you seem to do more than that. Perhaps an illusionist? ... And, do you strictly perform for cults or do you perform in other arenas as well?"​

 

[TragicTrees]

Mic lit up almost as soon as the manbegan to talk. Oh, he was just fantastic! Curious, dedicated, and completely oblivious. Well, he might as well entertain a bit more himself.

"I'm Henry Birch." He lied with ease, doing another bow "And I would offer a hand, but I'm dirty! So we'll skip that. Now, I adore your enthusiasm! But, I don't have a exact name for my job. Homeless illusionist might work, but I also fixed to do research on ancient cultures. Fascinating stuff, eh?"

He was hoping to work his way into being able to spend time with Vidal. It shouldn't be too hard; the professor seemed enticed with his 'work'. So, he would just have to tread lightly. Simple as that. Then, done! Entertainment acquired until he grew bored of it. And, at this rate, he didn't see it to be in the near future.

 

[Kitschington]

Vidal's eyes lit up when he finaly got a name from the man. Smiling widely again, he extended a hand to him... but quickly took it away when he recalled the false blood that was all over it. He chuckled a little and nodded kindly. "A pleasure to meet you, sir... Though... your circumstances don't sound exactly ideal. How is it that you're homeless when you're so fantastic at your work?", genuinely curious, Vidal wanted to know more about the man's life... But then he realised just how rude such a question was. Not exactly the best when it came to social cues, the professor quickly shook his head. "Ah.. I apologise. You don't have to answer that at all... But, you happen to be in luck! My apartment is quite a large one and I'd be more than happy to accomodate you in your search for a home of your own. I doubt that you'd be left wanting for very long with skills like those." Vidal's smile became even more brilliant when he realised what a grand opportunity he had here. In fact, he was almost too quick to open his home to a complete stranger. He hardly knew the man and yet he'd already invited him into his life... Vidal's attention then went to the people lying behind them. Finding himself a little worried, he tapped Henry on the shoulder. "Your other friends here... Are they all right? ... Under the influence of some sort of drug perhaps? "​

 

[TragicTrees]

"About the housing bit, that'd be great!" Mic replied, delighted that this had been that easy "And, the best acting is not acting! They're asleep, you know. I'll help them back to their homes!"

That was partially true. He'd help the girl, since there was really no use for her. And, he supposed the others grave was technically his new home, so that also worked. So, he wasn't lying. Possibly just twisting the truth a bit in his own favor. It wasn't like humans didn't do that a lot! But, he couldn't have here to witness the twisted truth. That just wouldn't do.

"Do you have a pen and paper? To write down your address? You look so neat, wouldn't want you to get dirty, so I could meet you there." He said, not too worried that Vidal would turn this down. After all, it was reasonable, wasn't it? The man seemed to care about his appearance, while Mic hardly did, and there was a good amount of blood.

 

[Kitschington]

Vidal was still a tad skeptical about the two that appeared to be somewhere between sleeping and unconscious. But he trusted the showman... since this was his show and all. With a smalll smile, he nodded to Henry's words and began writing down his address for the man. But, he suddenly realised something. "Ah, Mr. Birch. I forgot to tell you, but I live on a university's campus. It's a fairly secure location, so you'll probably need my escort in order to gain access to the grounds. My apartment is quiet, though, I assure you. Far from the students and their raucous partying", with a gentle chuckle, Vidal looked hopeful, truly wishing that the showman wouldn't be deterred by his statement. He didn't want to admit it openly... but Vidal was truly excited to have someone as enthusiastic as he was in his life. It wasn't often that he came across that type of passion. And, not only that, the man even seemed drawn to the very same subject that he loved! Practically beaming, Vidal finished with his writing and handed over the paper bearing his address. "Would you like for me to go on ahead? I could stay and help with rousing your friends, if you'd like. Then I could walk you to where you'll be staying!"​