rave
/rav/
verb
1. talk wildly or incoherently, as if one were delirious or insane.
2. speak or write about someone or something with great enthusiasm or admiration.
Hippy
hip·pie
/ˈhipē/
noun
(especially in the 1960s) a person of unconventional appearance, typically having long hair, associated with a subculture involving a rejection of conventional values and the taking of hallucinogenic drugs.
life
/līf/
noun
1. the condition that distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death.
"the origins of life"
2. the existence of an individual human being or animal.
3. a particular type or aspect of people's existence
4. the period between the birth and death of a living thing, especially a human being.
5. vitality, vigor, or energy.
6. (in art) the depiction of a subject from a real model, rather than from an artist's imagination.
Magic
mag·ic
/ˈmajik/
noun
1. the power of apparently influencing the course of events by using mysterious or supernatural forces.
2. mysterious tricks, such as making things disappear and appear again, performed as entertainment.
3. a quality that makes something seem removed from everyday life, especially in a way that gives delight.
4. something that has a delightfully unusual quality.
mag·ic
adjective
1. used in magic or working by magic; having or apparently having supernatural powers.
~Plot Stuff~
Hundreds and hundreds of years ago, there existed an otherworldly arcane essence that existed by the name of Magic/Magick. This essence was a variety of things. Lush and in great abundance, full of life and a energy that science had become a pale reflection of in the years that followed. However, it was also an essence that harbored a wicked face as well, bound to attract misfortune and death to all who were able to understand and or obtain it if not tamed properly. The secrets of this essence falling into the wrong hands would bring nothing but catastrophe.
And catastrophe it brought, those hundreds a years ago. One that thrust magic into an era in which it had began to fade and a new form of energy created at the hands of man became the new. The world in which magic had come from became a myth, magic itself became a myth as time progressed and left it to fade and never be seen again.
Or perhaps....what isn't seen isn't truly gone. And perhaps...the world thought to be myth is much more than just so. But what is certain is that what has lurked in the veils of shadows within the darkness, behind illusions of people, places and things. Forces that had managed to slip into the ages of the new world. Those of good. Those of evil and malice. Those of...magic. And perhaps...hope. But...will the newest of generations derived from those hundreds of years be able to face what comes?
And so we fly ahead in time to the present, where villages have become cities of tall structures, and dreams of flight have become a reality.
As soon as Yasha stepped back into Yoon's room, her forehead was met with the same heavy box that was thrown at her face earlier. Yoon managed to get out of the blankets slightly, only to sit on the edge of her bed. "You cannot steal money from a dead person! That's wrong!" She exclaimed. "I mean, all of this is wrong but this is even more wrong! You--"
Before she could say anything else, Yoon's mother walked in with the bamboo tray holding a variety of snacks, mostly being fruit. She provided them small dumplings and carrots as well, along with tall glasses of cold tea. "Eat, eat!" She glanced at her daughter. "친구를 더 자주 초대해야합니다." She said before exiting her room, doing her a favor of closing the door on her way out.
"나는 매우 동의한다, " Yasha said in response to Yoon's mother, though she did so while rubbing her forehead and glaring at Yoon some. "간식 주셔서 감사합니다!" As soon as the door closed, she said, "How many times are we going to go through this! It's not my fault that she dead nor that I happen to fall into the circumstance of being stuck in the body of someone who just so happens to have the resources that I can use to our benefit! And with all of the fuss that you're saying about it being wrong, were you not the one that asked me for a few thousands of dollars earlier today to repair your mother's vehicle?" She picked the box up off the ground, mumbling about things that had just been brought being thrown and the thanks she got for it.
Yoon's mother paused behind the door when it shut. She blinked again, her brows furrowing with multiple questions now on her mind. The smile she once had faltered slowly in thought, slowly making her way back into the kitchen.
"Well yeah but making money appear from magic sounds morally right than stealing it from a dead person!" She flailed her arms. "Why can't you be a cat again or a cute dog or a goldfish or something that doesn't resemble someone threatening to shut my mom's shop today and humiliated my publicly and online!" She finished the last of her gummy worms she got in the gas station earlier. "And stop talking to my mom in Korean, it's weird! Don't you have more KeEpErS to look for?"
"Why is everything I do supposedly weird to you? It isn't even called Korean where I come from! And as far I'm concerned, there's nothing online of you at all! And even if it was, it was your own fault for pointing at something that someone tells you many times over that no one else can see. And for the last time, money doesn't just appear! Nothing just appears–by the gods what is so hard to understand about that? And again, I didn't choose to be bound to this vessel. And even if I wasn't, what do you really think being a damned cat or dog would have changed about any of this? What you call 'morally right'?" She gave a mocking scoff. "How naive can one truly be?"
"Well it's not easy to grasp the entire concept of your existence and the whole world of freakin' magic under like, a few hours!" She argued back, her brows furrowing some more. "Uugh..." She rubbed her head no, laying back on her bed under the blankets, turning her back on Yasha. "....especially when you have to keep it a secret and make excuses for everything..." She mumbled under her breath. Yoon wanted to listen to music, reaching for her earphones she usually left under her pillow. But then she realized she had no phone to do so, and she felt bad using the one that was bought for her with money that wasn't hers. She sighed, and instead, crawled off the edge again to reach for her laptop that was hidden underneath her bed–logging on and lowering the brightness to the screen.
"Well its not exactly any easier helping someone grasp the concept of magic. Especially when that someone won't even make an ACTUAL ATTEMPT AT LEARNING MAGIC FOR HER BENEFIT!" Yasha countered with a retort. She let out a sigh. "You know, it would be better to store all of that angst for the person that's seeking your blood and death instead of the one that's attempting to prevent that as long as keep your family safe." She crossed her arms, watching as Yoon pulled the laptop from under the bed. She went to the platter left by Yoon's mother and grabbed some pineapple to eat. "If you want things to at least be easier, then you'd be better off being a little more cooperative. And with that being said...I require your assistance."
“My assistance?” Yoon plugged in earphones into the right ear, where her left one was still listening to Yasha. She adjusted herself under the covers for more comfort, turning on her playlist which consisted of a bunch of anime intros and basic songs. “What could you possibly want from me?” She spoke from underneath the covers.
"It's not about what I want, but what I need you to do." Yasha said as she started to stuff her face with the fruit, and a carrot or two every so often. When she turned around, her jaws were packed like a squirrels, full of berries and slices of pineapples. She pulled out of the infamous vanilla folder again and started where she had left off. "Though you it seems that you refuse to do anything that could be considered as social, I can assume that you're at the very least aware of the media. And I'll also assume that you have experience using the iNtErNeT as well. I believe that the next Keeper is somewhere closer than we could have anticipated." She picked up the phone box from the floor and placed it at the bedside.
Yoon stared at the phone, eventually sighing when she realized she couldn’t deny it forever. “So you want me to stalk someone?” She asked, reaching for a dumpling to eat. She began to unwrap the plastic from the box of the phone.
"No, not exactly. The stalking has already been done for us." Yasha gestured to the folder while saying this, already reaching for a dumpling to take on next. When she bit into it though, the juices that burst into her mouth took her by surprise. She continued to chew, waiting until she was finished to continue with what she was saying. "I need you to find a place called Soirée Epicée, a supposed night club." She said while tearing open the dollar store bag she still had and reaching in blindly to grab the jar of peanut butter that she had gotten from the store. And her eyes were on the dumplings while she did so.
"A night club? Oh, no no no no." Yoon shook her head. "They are very dangerous and filled with drug abusers and alcoholics u-under the age requirement may I add." She pointed out, switching tabs on her laptop while reaching for another dumpling. She searched the name as asked for and was easily able to find their website, rotating her laptop for Yasha to see. "There, from here on it's on you. Good luck and don't get drugged."
Yasha rolled her eyes as she unscrewed the top all the way off of her peanut butter and responded with a simple, "As if." She reached and grabbed a dumpling, hopping onto Yoon's bed and crossing her legs indian style in mid-air when doing so. She turned the laptop her way, using the dumpling like a scooping utensil to carefully gather some of the peanut butter from the freshly opened jar. "How old are you? Things like that don't occur in ever club you know. But if anything, I'd say that it makes it all the more interesting." She looked into the screen, reading over what was on the front page. All in the while, she popped the dumpling into her mouth.
"That's major disrespect to all cultures." Yoon cringed as she witnessed what she considered a crime, scooting away from Yasha. "I'm old enough to know that night clubs are nothing but a bunch of trouble! The place itself and everyone who attends."
"I'm curious, were you always this judgmental?" Yasha asked with a shake of her head. "Honestly, you speak as if you've never left your mother's arms in your life. Not even the slightest sense of adventure!" She furrowed her brows, grabbing another dumpling without looking and repeating her previous scoop of peanut butter. And as she scanned the screen, a small frown appeared on her face. She took out the picture of the woman that she was looking for once more and stared at it, comparing it to what she saw on the website's page.
~
How did I even do that?! Ugh, I hate myself sometimes. This is what ran through Raven's mind now while she was returning to the store after forgetting her wallet back at home. She crossed the street early this time, a little agitated that a simple task had taken more of a detour than it was supposed to. The worse part was that she could have sworn that people gave her a look as if it were weird to see her walking back from where she had just come from empty handed, or as if they thought that she were up to something–which clearly wasn't the case. All she wanted were her energy drink and chips.
She pushed through the door after her approach, keeping her head low in fear of an awkward confrontation or stares. She kept her earbuds in and tried o focus on the song "Chuck Norris" by the Gorrilaz to keep her mind busy while she took a anxiously hurried turned down the first isle available and made her way to the back where the coolers were.
"It's not about being judgmental. It's about facts. And I don't stay in my mother's arms." She corrected her. "I have plenty of adventures and I don't need to drink or smoke to do so." She finally decided to reach for a fruit this time, slowly crunching on a slice of apple. "What? Found something?" Yoon asked her.
"Calling people who only want to have fun with their companions "trouble" isn't a fact. That's an opinion. Just because one enjoys a drink on occasions and actually attends social events doesn't make them bad people. I'd go as far as to say that that's just poor judgement on your behalf. Especially coming from someone who's biggest adventures are bound to be to a mall to speak about weather and back." Yasha really didn't answer Yoon's question at first and instead continued to observe the differences between what she saw on the laptop versus what she saw on the photo. "This website's photos seem to be outdated," She said finally and looked up from the screen. "The depiction of it on this woman's photo shows that it was taken at a much more recent date. Is there any possible way to retrieve someone's address without knowing their exact location?"
"Fine, then that's your opinion about the situation. Not everyone has time to be partying every night and getting absolutely hammered." Yoon shrugged, even if Yasha's opinion was completely wrong. At her last question, she grabbed another slice of apple. "How am I supposed to know? Doubt people go around posting their address online. That would only emphasize stupidity. It's dangerous." She bit into the slice and chewed softly. "Aren't you like, a celebrity online? Just contact your people or whatever or post a photo of her. Use that... corpse of yours to your benefit." She said, switching tabs back to the online website that allowed her to catch up with her favorite shows.
"And draw more attention to the individual than necessary, hence putting that same individual into more danger than necessary. Yes, what an excellent idea! Bravo!" Yasha complimented sarcastically. "Perhaps we can go back to the mall and not move the next time someone hurls what I now know to be a 'SUV' at us. Oh, or better yet, we should just go and expose where you live to make live bait!" She continued. "Or how about we emphasize that stupidity and I can remove the sigils as well! Wonderful, wonderful ideas!" When she felt like Yoon got her point, she scoffed. "You should put all of the sugar you consume to better use." Placing one of the two photos of the person in question down in front of Yoon, she continued. "Raven La Roux is her name. Notice anything unusual about it?"
The photo itself was of the brunette staring out into the distance. Only the noticeably stained, but clean dull yellow shirt that she wore was part of the picture, the rest of her body got off by the frame. Her nose and upper cheeks were red, which were perhaps a sign of her being in a cold area. She wore a pair of glasses and the tattoos on her neck and arms stuck out on her skin just as much as the cherry red that covered her lips.
But it was the fact that the picture itself was within a frame of paper, like it had been printed out in color much like the first.
“Listen, if you want to keep pointing every single flaw about me or my opinion, which is why their called opinions, then the door is right there. My mom didn’t prepare a snack plate for someone who’s just going to me judging my sense of style or hobbies. And I don’t get why I’m much help at all if I keep saying ‘wrong and stupid things’.” She said, glancing at her from her screen. “As for the photo, the sugar in my body and my stupidity impedes me from telling a difference.” She mocked tiredly.
"I find that a bit rich coming from someone who's been doing nothing but judging sense the beginning of this mess. I could care less about your hobbies let alone your supposed sense of 'style'. But you are correct, I am indeed critical of your ability to reason and your level of critical thinking. Two things that are a must. Two things that you are also lacking in severely. I didn't go out of my way to be considerate enough to pay for the vehicle for the sake of the mother of a child who complains about every small detail without at least having the decency to listen to what the situation is calling for. Whether you'd like to or not, there are things that you must learn if not for your own sake then for the sake of the ones around you. But of course, the choice to allow me to help you is entirely your decision." She turned to throw her legs over the side of the bed and got to her feet, gathering the papers and the folder and her peanut butter.
Yoon rolled her eyes. “I didn’t say I didn’t want your help. I simply said I didn’t want...” She paused, and sighed to herself. She took in a deep breath with a lingering frown before exhaling again. And that’s when she retrieved Yasha’s folder, opening it back to the picture. “I do notice a big difference. They look nothing alike.” She returned to the matter at hand, suppressing any previous thoughts.
"Exactly," Yasha answered with a satisfied nod as she knelt down to settle the collected items onto the floor. "Not only that, but one of the three is more recent than the others. Which means that we at least have a lead on the individual or where to start. If there's no way to pinpoint her location directly, then I'll just have to go about things the old fashioned way." She sighed. "The curses of not having my proper tools." Reaching into one of the bags, she asked. "You know how to drive, correct?"
"...Y-Yes...." Yoon answering regarding her capability of driving. She put the photo back into the vanilla folder. "So what... we just walk in a club calling out her name? I'm underaged and can get us into trouble, just saying."
"No, not exactly the plan. But close enough," Yasha answered, having to open the bag further and look down into it when she couldn't find what it was that she was looking for. "You won't have to go inside. I just need a more efficient means get there–here they are," she went on to announce, pulling out a car key that she tossed over to her. "First, there are a couple of items that will be needed.
"Items? What items?" Yoon asked, clumsily dropping the keys when they were tossed at her. She went to pick them up, almost bumping into a piece of furniture while doing so. "So what do you want me to do a-again?
"I need you to drive me to a place where I can retrieve a fair abundance of pottery clay, as well as a place that provides raw ingredients. Perhaps a local farmer's market or one of the stores here." Yasha reached over and took the second to the last dumpling from the plate, adding on to what she said before she ate it. "And perhaps a blade...yes, a sword. Or maybe a glaive."
Yoon found Yasha's requests more than just odd. "Ummm..." Her brows furrowed slightly as she listed all of them in her head. "May I ask... why? Why all that?" She blinked. "And... where the heck am I going to get a sword? We're far from the medieval era unless you want one from Target out of plastic."
"A plastic sword?" Yasha's noes wrinkled some in dismay. "I'd rather not waste time on something that useless. Though, I should have known with how industrialized things are here that this would probably be the case. Which means that I will have to find an alternative to train you with at some given point. As for the other materials, I need the clay to create a mortar and pestle and the ingredients for a later task."
Yoon blinked. “W-what?” She asked, confusion ridden all over her face. She didn’t understand what any of those words meant and if it was something dangerous to watch out for. But at the mentioning of training, she raised a brow. “That’s why we have the police here.” She reminded her.
"Do you honestly believe that they'd be of any assistance whatsoever? What, are they going to arrest him and hope that cuffs and a cell is going to do the trick?" Yasha nearly laughed. "Learning how to control and utilize your abilities would be the best form of defense for you. That is, if you were more prepared both physically and mentally. Which would first require you to cover the basics of the books before you can even began to start on the real things."
“And how exactly am I supposed to beat level one?” Yoon’s brows furrowed as she compared her problem to a video game. “Still don’t think you’re getting that you might have chosen the wrong person for this.”
"After witnessing you unintentionally enlarge socks, a Droven also being after you, and the incident back at this vessel's place of residence you still expect me to believe that I am mistaken?" Yasha looked at her with a puzzled expression and raised an eyebrow. "After you both witnessed and experienced it for yourself? Come now, there are times where not even denial can excuse truth. I'll have to teach you what I can with the knowledge and experience that I have acquired myself."
“I’m not denying anything, I’m just saying there’s other people better off being acquainted with you than I.” Yoon stared. “I’m sure this entire thing was a mistake of some sort and you’ll be taking your leave eventually.” She dragged herself out of bed to change into a pair of black leggings and an oversized hoodie, paired with converse and sunglasses, even if it wasn’t sunny.
Yasha was silent, thinking to herself while Yoon was throwing on her hoodie and extra accessory. She turned and took the last dumpling, devouring that one as well. And then she turned to Yoon. "Is this about you having no one to acquaint yourself with yet at your age?" The question was blatant. "If so, then I'd be more that happy to assure you that I certainly won't be going anywhere any time soon. We have plenty of time to become acquainted. We could also use your new 'phone' to contact your most recent potential friend from the store as well."
“This has nothing to do with that.” Yoon squinted with an annoyed expression. “I have plenty of acquaintances thank you very much. Don’t hesitate to use that ‘plenty of time’ to suddenly disappear. A-nd no! I’m telling you that was an accident or it was meant for you or meant to call in case our order was wrong.”
"Or it was purposely placed there for the person that she had given the receipt to," Yasha added the third option. "And if my memory serves me correctly, and I'll tell you that it does serve me very well, did you not already admit to having no one to acquaint yourself with?" She gave Yoon a smile. "Either way, you're going to have to become aware of the concept of trusting me."
“I-I don’t remember that...” Her cheeks turned a light shade of red. She tried avoiding any conversation about the topic by grabbing the empty tray and walking briskly out her room, keeping her head low while setting the tray onto the sink in the kitchen after giving it a quick rinse.
Yasha chuckled while watching the flustered Yoon leave the room, thinking if she should start considering her as just a tall dwarf. She left the room shortly afterwards, casting a vague glance over towards the bathroom. She went for the door, deciding to wait for Yoon there while she would be putting her shoes back on.
Yoon took longer than necessary to return to the door. She was about to exit until she remembered she needed to notify her mother. Yoon turned to face the designated room she shared with her son. "내가 외출 해요!!!" She called out.
It only took a few seconds for Yoon's mother to come rushing out the room, seemingly with a face filled with terribly applied makeup since she was letting her son enjoy himself on her. "뭐? 당신은 음식을 그리워 할 것입니다!" She exclaimed regarding skipping dinner.
"I won't take long, I-I promise!" Yoon felt awkward since it was kind of her first time mentioning she'd be back after dinner. She shook her head and quickly exited the door.
Yasha gave a smile to the mother, speaking before she left. "식사 주셔서 감사합니다 ... 부인. 만두는 맛 있었다!" She spoke carefully to ensure that she at least got the important parts of what she was attempting to say across. She gave a small bow and added in English on her way out the door with a wave. "Have a wonderful evening!"
"Stop trying to make my mom like you or else she'll practically adopt you and I don't need more annoying siblings." Yoon shut the door, ensuring it was locked before she pulled over her hood and shoved her arms into the pockets of her hoodie.
"If that comes to be, then I'll just have to make sure that I enlighten myself on the use of your younger sibling's dart shooter. He seemed to be having a grand time." Yasha said humorously. "And suppose I could possibly grow fond of your mother's cooking."
"No, do not even begin to imagine a fake future." Yoon mumbled from her covered lips. She continued her way around the corner of the halls, finding herself skipping down the stairs. However, although she thought she was going fast, her legs couldn't really keep up with Yasha's.
"You brought the thought to light, not I," Yasha replied nonchalantly while going around the corner. She took her time going down the stairs at a pace that was reasonable enough since they luckily wouldn't be walking for much longer this time around. After reaching the last step, she retraced the way that she came upon arrival and headed out into the parking lot.
"Where is this car you spoke of earlier?" Yoon asked, retrieving the keys from her satchel. "Do you know how to drive? Maybe you have a better chance of not crashing. Clearly I fail to avoid that." She said with annoyance, referring back to earlier when her car was wrecked.
"Drive? Me?" Yasha started chuckling. "Honestly speaking, I wouldn't even know where to began with those sorts of contraptions. I didn't in kingdoms of my land, and I'm sure with some of the similarities between the ones here and there, it would be too much the same. I'm much more of a rider than a driver." She then pointed over passed the other cars within the lot. "I left it over yonder. A rather pleasant man offered to drive it here after a bit of a small bribe."
"You really need to stop stealing from the dead." Yoon suggested for what felt the 100th time. "Riding?" Her brows furrowed, and although she was about to question it, she stopped herself because in all honesty, she didn't want to know more about her origins or situation. She wished that perhaps a memory spell existed where she could just forget about everything that happened today.
Yasha rolled her eyes at Yoon's comment about her "stealing", which she could have sworn that she'd heard for the 1000th time already. However, at Yoon's question about what she had meant by "riding", she grinned a bit proudly. "I, am a certified rider of the alatum. I've found books here with depictions of creatures that are similar, yet they lack many properties that the alatum has. Or at least one of the varieties does–zebras, I believe they were called."
They walked passed the next three vehicles that were awkwardly spaced out, one of them being an orange Chevy that was park crookedly within its space, the back of it barely avoiding being push against the more modern Suburban that was in the next lot beside it. Just passed the middle of the lot and intentionally placed under the streetlight for "extra effect" was a link, one that was a glossy black so dark that it would have almost reflected its surrounded perfectly if not for the initial glare of light from above. The rims of its tires twinkled with a subtle glint.
Yasha looked over the car while they approached it. "I wonder what the amount of just a few tens of thousands of dollars would be in aurum and platino coinage."
Yoon came to a stop when she realized which of the cars were now hers–or at least, her mom's. She blinked, inevitably looking at her own reflection from the glossy black of the vehicle. And when she heard the price, she felt her stomach turn and her heart drop. She felt more than just intimidated by simply standing next to it. Her attention slowly shifted to Yasha and she shook her head softly. "N-No, I can't ride that--It's too big." Compared to her last car, it was a major difference in size and quality. "W-We should take like, the bus or maybe a taxi o-or uber--"
