Wander far and wander long, but never forget to wander home

Clockwise Dream · Jan 6, 2016

There is a pair if keys in his pocket that falls out as he pulls a wad of bills to pay for his drink-he does not know why he had bought it. He is not hungry, or cold, or in any need of it, at all. Still, he bought it, and it is warm in his hand as he bends down to pick up the keys that have fallen out as the person behind him in the line quietly informs him. For a moment, he wonders what they are for-he doesn't remember, not really, until he suddenly he does. He remembers buying an apartment, years ago, for the reason even more mysterious than the one behind him buying a cap of coffee he does not need or want. He left the shop, putting the keys back in his pocket again, and as he did this, he forgot about them again.

He few weeks ago, he remembered as he wandered by the building to which he suddenly realized he had keys to. Wandering up to the apartment felt like nothing. He stayed in it for no more than a few minutes however. He didn't dislike stillness, as he did not dislike anything, but he could never stay still much despite of it.

He wanders in and out of the apartment every few weeks, sometimes even months, after that, never spending more than an hour, maybe two at most in it. He cannot stay still. He is not used to it. And it is not like anything good happened the last time he had decided to stay still. Not that he thought of that. He didn't think of much of anything. He simply wandered in, and out, and in, his reasons for doing so, unknown even to him.

@Omino

Omino · Jan 6, 2016

Murphy took the stairs two at a time carrying a heavy bag of groceries in each arm. For once things seemed to be working out for him; rent was paid, he was caught up on his research and he'd even had a bit of money to spare for groceries. For once in his life things weren't falling to utter shit around him and that alone was cause for celebration.

For only three months he'd lived on the island yet already he felt more at home here than he had anywhere else. Granted, things still went wrong constantly but unlike elsewhere people tended to understand that they weren't necessarily his fault and the paperwork given to him by the academy provided him a certain amount of leeway when explaining why the pipes burst for the third time that year or why power suddenly went out just for his building. It wasn't perfect but it was far better than he'd be getting anywhere else.

He fumbled about for his keys and juggled the sack around so he could get the lock open. He'd been fortunate enough to find somewhere actually affordable on the allowance the school gave him and the owner had seemed eager to get rid of it. Apparently the previous tenant had simply disappeared, leaving the place fully furnished when he himself had moved in. Things seemed to have gone almost too well actually, all things considered.

It wasn't until he swung the door open and found himself staring face to face with an utter stranger standing in his home. After the initial shock and a quick glance to make sure it was indeed his apartment Murphy coughed. "Er, hello there. Can I help you sir?"

Given the island's nature he wasn't quite sure whether he was dealing with an actual person, some sort of construct, demon or something else entirely. He seemed only a tad older than Murphy himself and otherwise looked fairly human. There was something about his eyes though. A distinct lack of emotion, like he was dead inside or something.

Well, here was hoping he hadn't been sent to kill him or something.

@Clockwise Dream

Clockwise Dream · Jan 6, 2016

He had been in the apartment for less an hour this time, staring at the walls, his mind empty, yet full, as it always was. He was not thinking though, not here, in silence, away from people, where there was nothing to think of, or wonder about. There was nothing here period, just furniture that had been there when he had bought the space-considering he had never actually moved in. Not that he possessed anything that was exactly his, any way...

Then, suddenly, there were steps out there, and then a voice, in here, in the space that had always been empty and silent. He turned around, and saw a man standing at the door.

Er, hello there. Can I help you sir?

He didn't frown, or even look surprised. His face so rarely changed expressions after all, and surprise...he briefly wondered what surprise felt like.

He knew he should reply. It had been addressed to him, the question, after all, and people don't usually find other people in the space which was theirs, right? At least he thought so. He tried to remember what little time he had spent living in a house somewhere else, far away from here. He couldn't, not really.

''No'', he said in the end, for he did not need help. He had a feeling though that that might not be what the man was asking. He continued staring at the ma, unsure of what exactly he was supposed to do next.

Omino · Jan 6, 2016

After the monosyllabilic answer and a several long seconds of awkward silence, Murphy tried again. "Ah, well my name's Murphy I uh, live here. Who might you be?" The man's monotone and lack of emotion was, funny enough, something that Murphy had learned to deal with after a few months of learning martial arts under Milk's tutelage. He'd learned that phrasing and patience were key.

While waiting for the man to respond he began to sort his groceries, storing the stuff neatly in the cabinets and small refrigerator that the place had come with. If this was going to be as similar to his introduction to Milk as he assumed it would be, this conversation was going to take a while.

@Clockwise Dream

Clockwise Dream · Jan 6, 2016

''Leo'', the man answered after several long moments of silence, during which he tried to comprehend the fact which he had just been told. His fingers wrapped around the keys currently safely placed in his empty pocked. They had opened the door, he was sure. He had not used force. He had not made the lock explode, or the door move when they did not want to be moved. He would know. He had done it plenty of times before. He looked back at the man.

''I am Leo'', he repeated, for he almost always did, though this time, the man asked who he was rather than what his name was. The answer was the same, though, in any way.

''This...'', he said, looking around the apartment, an empty space filled with only the basic of things. ''Is supposed to be mine.''

Omino · Jan 6, 2016

Ah, that explains the missing previous tenant.

"Well the landlord said that the person who used to be here had been gone for months and hadn't paid rent hence now I'm here."

He reached for a couple bottles of beer but paused and grabbed soda instead. Probably not a great idea to get drunk with someone who'd just dropped everything and disappeared like that. He offered one to Leo and motioned to the sofa before flopping down into one of the secondhand recliners he'd bought. "Well you may as well have a seat. We should probably figure out what to do next. The building manager is out for the rest of the week so we won't really be able to resolve this quickly." Murphy took a swig from the bottle. "Surely you've got a place to stay already?"

@Clockwise Dream

Clockwise Dream · Jan 6, 2016

''Rent?'', he repeated after the man, looking at the bottle offered to him not with suspicion, but with an instinct trained into him by blood not to trust anything given to him by strangers. He still took it a moment, however, though he did not open it, used to fighting all of his impulses, the things that previous Leo trained into him. Do not trust anybody. Food can be poisoned. Food is rare, and stale, and bad. All the things such as this that had no place in an everyday life.

Everyday life, where apparently, paying for something once doesn't always mean it is yours.

He watched as the other man sat down on the sofa he himself had very rarely used. Most of the time he was even here he either stood, and stared, or walked through what space there was like a ghost.

''No'', he answered after yet another long silence. ''It does not matter'', he added after a few more moments. It did not, after all. He did not need the space. He had bought it-or, well, apparently, did not-for the reasons he himself could not even understand. He wasn't used to owning things anyway.

Omino · Jan 6, 2016

A quick glance at the snow outside was all Murphy needed to make a decision. "Yeah... it's below freezing outside. Regardless of whether you're a human, demon, ghost, angel or whatever you shouldn't be out there alone." He hooked a thumb at the room he'd been using as an office and storage. "This place does have an extra room. If I shove some stuff around you can crash here. I've got an air mattress you can use. I'd offer you the bed that was originally here but I had to toss it. There was a leak in the roof and it got soaked then turned moldy."

It really wasn't the smartest thing to do, he knew. Letting a complete stranger stay in the place that he himself legally had right to could hardly be called safe. But he'd spent a few nights out in the cold on his own and whether or not you could survive it, it sucked to not have a place to go. Besides, despite his constant bad luck there hadn't been anything actually bad enough to kill him...yet.

@Clockwise Dream

Clockwise Dream · Jan 6, 2016

The man looked at the other with empty eyes, trying to understand what he was saying, not because he didn't truly understand-though that happened sometimes as well,-but for the fact that he was almost sure, from what little about society he knew, that such an offer was...strange. It was not, however, like he knew that much, in the end, so he said nothing, not about that anyway.

''I do not feel the cold'', he said instead of that, looking briefly to the outside. There was snow, and the temperature was far from warm. To most people, spending the night out there would be uncomfortable at least. To him, it was nothing. It was not like he would sleep, anyway. He rarely did. Mostly, he just kept moving through the night.

''I am... none of those things'', he said, as the man listed all the things that he thought him to be. ''I am Leo'', he repeated, not even knowing if the man would understand, if he knew about the Zodiacs, and such similar things. He might, however, and for a moment, he wondered if he should have been more mindful of his nature. There were people out there looking for him, for what he could do...

This man did not feel like one of them though, and had not reacted to his introduction in anyway. It was probable then, that that would not change.

Omino · Jan 14, 2016

"Leo, huh? Like an actual lion or like the Zodiac symbol or something else entirely?"

Another appraising look at the man revealed... well, nothing. Either he had an incredible poker face or he legitimately had no real emotions to show and Murphy couldn't decide which would be more unsettling.

"Well, regardless I've no issue with you staying here as long as you're not gonna try to kill me or something. If you're gonna stay here I should probably warn you though, my 'gift', as they call it, is actually just bad luck. Like, really bad luck. Things constantly go wrong around me so don't be surprised if something like-"

It was at that point the power flickered before shutting off completely, plunging the flat into semi darkness.

"Well... like that happens." He finished with a sigh.

@Clockwise Dream

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Wander far and wander long, but never forget to wander home

Clockwise Dream

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Omino

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Clockwise Dream

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Omino

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Clockwise Dream

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Omino

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Clockwise Dream

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Omino

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Clockwise Dream

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Omino

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