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Post by mairamerol on Dec 31, 2010 2:37:29 GMT -5
  Cement paved a road surrounded by metal bars, chain link fences, and glass walls. From behind those barriers, eyes reflecting dreams of freedom stared into a crowd of people. Those dreamers’ eyes looked on and on, past the people, to the trees and the city beyond the zoo. They made their wishes known by loudly voicing their opinions. A cacophony of bored howls from monkeys, ear-splitting squawks from parrots, and rumbling complaints from large felines erased any chance at a peaceful day, not that it would be peaceful anyway. The caged creatures could never measure up to the amount of deafening noise coming from another type of animal: the humans. Children raced from pen to pen, making faces at the lonely rhinoceros and pointing to the fangs of a yawning tiger. They gasped, screamed, and talked at the top of the voices, as if their parents weren’t standing but a few feet away. However, The parents, supposedly role models for these wild kids, didn’t really help when it came to noise reduction. Mothers gossiped with other mothers while fathers grumbled about this and that with other fathers. Couples giggled and flirted, comparing each other to the animals… because it’s just every girl’s dream to her boyfriend say “and you look like that warthog.” With all that pointless, distracting sound, it was really quite hard for Maira to concentrate. The lone girl sat on a bench, inconspicuously sketching the figure of a plump lion, who’d sprawled in the hot sun to take a long nap. No doubt to escape from all the eyes inspecting and judging him. With the elegant curve of her pencil, she sketched the length of his tail, but her eyes shifted from the worn notebook to her true objective of the day: finding out just how Mrs. Colleen Willsberg acted. The lady, anything but charming, was the wife of a semi-rich man, Mr. James Willsberg, who lived in the higher end of town. With that part of town came arrogance, and Mrs. Willsberg was no exception. She paraded herself around town as if she was a glittering diamond fit for a queen. Even here, at this place of unpleasant animal odors, spilled sodas, sticky children, old hot-dogs, and wind-blown trash, the woman wore an overly extravagant outfit. Gems glittered on her finger, blinding in the near midday sun. Besides the rings, she was displaying a flowing skirt and a high-end top. No doubt from stores that cost two hundred dollars an item. She was a beacon for attention, mostly because she just simply didn’t fit in this scene. Earlier this morning, while waiting for a ticket in line outside the giant gates, Mai had “accidentally” collided with the Gucci clad woman. At first, it was all cold glares and unquestionable contempt from her target, but after a few minutes of profuse pleading apologies, Mrs. Willsberg had grudgingly given her forgiveness. There was at least one plus, she hadn’t even check edfor a stolen wallet, but then, who could suspect a girl like Maira, a girl with such an innocent smile and bubbly nature, of having bad intentions? Not many. Not many at all. It’s ironic, really. Scrambling through her notebook, Mai flipped to a page that had neatly scrawled handwriting decorating the left side. It was a list. Quickly, she added with flowing strokes: ‘Walks with a confident step. Head is held high, chin never level. Never makes eye contact with anyone she feels is less important.'Once more, she peeked up from her journal, just in time to see a child dressed in clothes that looked a shame to dirty, as it would be like throwing hundreds of dollars away, raced up to Mrs. Willsberg. The lady smiled at the child for a moment, then took his hand. So maybe there was some light her after all. ‘Loves her son.’Before any prying, suspicious eyes could fall upon her jotting, she ruffled the pages of the yellow-papered notebook until her less than beautiful drawing of the over-fed king of the forest once again took center stage. She was satisfied with the list she’d gathered at the moment. Now, she’d just have to enjoy her time at the zoo. Maybe I can learn a few new forms. Her eyes slid down to her sketch once more a smile flowered across her lips. Finishing her though aloud, she chimed out in a giggly voice. "But I guess i should throw this away first. The poor lion looks like a potato with a tail." Her drawing really did no justice to the sleeping beast. But maybe it was just the cold. That's what she'd tell herself anyway.
STATUS # DONE FEATURING # LEV WORD COUNT # 766 NOTES # I haven't started a post in forever, sorry if it's a little rusty. CREDIT # IRONICALLIZE_IT @ CAUTION 2.0 |
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Post by Lev Milokov on Jan 2, 2011 6:28:27 GMT -5
 Another day at work meant another day of stresses. Sure, he loved his job, but it was his boss that was the pain in the ass. It seemed like Svend was always up on his high horse, telling people what to do and what he wasn't pleased with. Lev seemed to be the one he loved targeting the most, and for a number of reasons. Just because Lev was used to it though, didn't mean he disliked it any less. In a few ways, he could understand why the guy was pushing him so much. He was of the veteran hunters for the Bridgefield Union, and one of the more experienced ones with well. Lev had been doing this kind of stuff since he was an infant, just past the stage of being a baby, really. What Lev didn't understand though, was why his boss pushed things on him so much, when he had a fiance and a young son that he looked forward to coming home to.
These days though, his fiance was now his wife, and his son wasn't so little anymore. It actually surprised him some that he'd made it this far and that Remy hadn't killed him yet for dating and eventually marrying his daughter. He's come close to it, putting Lev in the hospital for a good amount of time, but he wasn't dead. And he had Issy to thank for that. She was the only reason he was still alive, well, her and his son, Markov. But all of that was beside the point. At the moment, he was thinking of his boss. Svend hadn't changed much, and now that Markov was older, Lev couldn't get away much with leaving work early. Hell, he couldn't even do it that much when Markov was little. The only time Svend had allowed him to do that, was when Issy was close to her due date when she was pregnant with Markov, and whenever Markov was sick at home.
Today, obviously wasn't one of those days, and Lev had to work full time as usual. Earlier in the afternoon, he'd been told to go to the zoo and search for a shifter that seemed to like causing a bit of trouble around the city. From what he's heard last, he was spotted at the zoo, a strange place for someone like him to be. However, since he was a shifter, it had it's not so strange side as well. But orders were orders, and Lev had arrived about an hour and a half ago to search for his target. Unlike his usual tactics though, Lev was lacking his guns on this little outing. He usually brought them wherever he went, even when he wasn't working. This time though, there was no way was he going to bring some firearms into a place that had a family atmosphere and was packed with children. Being here reminded him of when he used to take Markov here when he was younger, and he knew he'd be upset himself if he saw anyone with guns walking around.
So for now, he just had to do without them. If anything happened, which he hoped it wouldn't in the middle of the zoo, then he knew damn well how to defend himself with hand to hand combat. It was one of the first things he was taught back in Russia when he was training to be a hunter. Something else he was taught was to always be alert, and it was basically a natural instinct to him now. No, it wasn't like he was ALWAYS on high alert in a nervous sort of way, but he kept track of his surroundings. That fact, was what got him to notice a younger woman sitting at one of the benches. From behind, he could tell that she had fiery red hair and something like a notebook in her lap. As he got closer to her, he heard her mumble a few words out loud to herself. Now, he couldn't help but show his typical rude and sarcastic side. "You know, talking to yourself makes people think you're strange, or crazy." Oh yea, that rude tone of his was definitely showing through. "Or both." He added in shortly after. He didn't care if he startled the woman, or offended her in any way. That was just who he was to people in general. ---------- Tag: Maira
Word Count: 759
Notes: -
Lyrics: I don't care - Apocalyptica
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Post by mairamerol on Jan 3, 2011 1:04:10 GMT -5
 Maira’s feminine shoulders jolted backward and her eyes widened as a voice rang out from near her. She hadn’t expected anyone to be listening to her. In fact, she hadn’t realized she’d said that out loud. It was sort of just instinct after being silent for so long to want to say something out loud, but that’s not what she was worried about. She was in absolute shock. That guy had come from nowhere and it upset her that she startled so easily. Who had the guts to sneak up on her?! Didn’t they know who she was?! Oh that’s right… Silly Mai. Of course they didn’t know who she was. Most humans don’t know a shifter when they see one. She felt a little bad for getting all defenseive in her head… well that is until she heard what this guy had to say. She scowled a little while she listened to a man talk. Of course it would be a man to say something like that. A woman would’ve been much more tactful or at least commented on how bad her picture was. He was just being plain rude. Typical dude thing. But Mai wasn’t one to let a word war go. She could fight with the best of them.
”And people are going to think you’re an asshole if that’s how you talk when you first meet them.” She smoothed down her dark purple sweater and set the over-used notebook down on the bench beside her then tucked it beneath her thigh. The pencil she took less care of and allowed to roll through a slat in the bench, onto the concrete sidewalk and away toward a trashcan. That pencil was useless anyway. It was the notebook she was worried about nyone getting their hands on. Her head tilted upward so she could see the face of this high and mighty man. He appeared older than her, but sometimes young guys looked old when they got too stressed or worked a lot, so she couldn’t really tell. She was willing to guess that no wife would ever put up with such coldness, but she was probably wrong there too. Some women were just dumb. Or he could actually be nice to her and an asshole to everyone else. She could see that being possible.
As she thought and the milliseconds ticked and ticked, her scowl faded, and faint smirk took it’s place. She wasn’t really one for letting a stray comment get to her, but if there were more, that’d be a different story. Her icey blue-grey eyes were on the man. And that’s all he was. Just a man. Shepeered around his shoulders to the right… looking for someone. Then to the left, again searching for some sign of a companion that he might have come with. But… she saw no wife. No child. Not even some younger person or a friend anywhere around him. Nope. There was absolutely no one. He was here alone, she could tell right off. A wickedly amused smile shoe on her face. He looked like a tough guy, like he knew how to fight, but here he was at a zoo with all these cute, cuddly, fuzzy-wuzzy animals, and she wasn’t about to let this stranger live that down. Not if he was going to start calling her crazy and strange.
”So what’s a guy like you doing here? Just come to make fun of people?” Really what was he doing here? ”Come to look at all the adorable animals that you secretly just want to take home with you? No that doesn’t seem to be the case…" Was he trying to learn some new fight moves from the animals? Her normally bright eyes narrowed a bit as she scrutinized him. He certainly had the muscles of the fighter. And normally, fighters weren’t all that intelligent. She’d take a stab and see where that got her. ”Hmmm... You know, the animals don’t actually know the karate moves named after them right?” [/color] [/center] [/size][/font] |
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Post by Lev Milokov on Jan 3, 2011 6:00:17 GMT -5
Lev's instincts of always being alert were still at hand. He was very much aware of his surroundings, even of the things behind him. It might've been strange to do such a thing at a zoo, but hey, you never knew where people would attack. On a day to day basis, it was driven into his mind when he was training. Always be alert, no matter where you were. If he failed at that, or anything while at the facility, he'd be punished. They were extremely strict about everything, but it all payed off in the end. It helped to make him who he was today, and some of likely had to do with why he was so rude as well. So if anyone had to complain about it, they'd only get even more of his attitude. Speaking of which, the younger at the woman at the bench spoke, with a not so nice reply. That was to be expected though. "I am an asshole. So why would I care?" He said to her.
And he truly was. Ask anyone who knew Lev about his attitude, and you'd get that he was an ass, or something along those lines. Some people, like his friends for instance, probably would've put it in nicer terms. And yes, Lev did have friends. He didn't show much of his sour behavior around them though, or around anyone else he cared about, especially his family. It was kind of ironic that a guy who spent most of his time killing and offending people, came home at the end of the day to become a loving husband and father. It was like he led two separate lives, but at the same time, he didn't. Lev was always so caught up in his work, that he had to do some of the paperwork involved at home. Now, why didn't he just quit if he spent so much time with it all? Well for one, he actually enjoyed hunting. Two, it got him paid. Without money, he would be nowhere.
That being said though, he wasn't about to announce to this shifter that he was a hunter. Not everyone took too kindly to that, not that he really cared. He just didn't want to start any trouble in a zoo. Heh, his attitude wasn't helping with that though. And when he heard her next few sentences, Lev's features remained the same. Unamused and somewhat careless. "I'm sorry, but last time I checked, what I'm doing here was none of your business." As he spoke, a rather strong Russian accent flowed through the air. However, it wasn't to the point where you couldn't understand what he was saying. Maybe a few words were a bit difficult here and there, but that was it. And being Russian, he obviously spoke the language fluently. If he were ever upset, one could find him cursing and voicing his opinions in Russian.
The one issue here though, was that the shifter appeared to be Russian herself. If he complained or said anything else, he didn't doubt that she'd be able to understand it. For the time being though, he didn't have much reason to start cursing. So he kept with english and waited for the shifter to come back at him with a rude comment of her own. What she had said last though, was very much understandable. It was odd to see someone like him, a guy who looked like some sort of hunter with a tattoo at the left side of his neck, at a zoo on his own. Maybe if he had Issy and Markov with him, it'd make a lot more sense. But no, there wasn't anyone else here. He was simply on the job, but again, he wasn't about to tell that to the shifter. She could figure it out on her own if she wanted, and if she had any problems with it, then they were her problems, not his. ---------- Tag: Maira
Word Count: 686
Notes: -
Lyrics: I don't care - Apocalyptica
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Post by mairamerol on Jan 4, 2011 22:37:10 GMT -5
With a roll of her silvery blue eyes, the shifter, who was more than capable of defending herself when it came to wars of words, decided to take a page out of the intelligent book, and just let the man’s blatant claim to be an asshole slide away like he’d never even said it. If she was argumentative and stupid, then she would’ve said something else to add onto or possibly even refute his response, but she got the feeling that he was telling the truth and there was really no point in dragging it on if he agreed with her. At least he had the sense to do that instead of arguing, that is, at least he knew and acknowledged his true nature of being a snide asshole. It was something that many people would never admit, at least not to a complete stranger. She added a few points to this man’s respect score with her, which was rather low at the moment.
See, with Maira, respect was truly earned, not given away. In her book, you start at zero. Every negative aspect subtracts points, while each positive, such as optimism in some cases, and kind words always, earns points. At the moment, she believed he would stand at a negative ten, but then, she was just guessing. She didn’t actually keep tally It was more of a scale of how much she disliked someone. He was on the lowest end yet. Some people just liked to throw around sharp words. Some couldn’t control it at all. But perhaps he would get a little better. Maybe. As she listened to him, for he just kept right on talking, this time about her staying out of his business, it didn’t seem like his attitude would change much, but she wasn’t going to let it get to her. A sort of warmth had spread through her.
It was the warmth of familiarity. His accent reminded her of people she used to know… people she could no longer see or hear or touch. Her father. Her brother. The warmth spread through her body, allowing a small smile to turn p the corners of her mouth, but it just as soon vanished. His accent also reminded her of her dear mother. A mother she would never see again. Discomfort forced Mai into shifting her weight. She bit down on her lower lip to keep tears from forming, and instead focused her attention on this man…. This Russian who had brought back happy memories… and bitter ones, though he wouldn’t know it. But the memories made her heart a little softer for just a moment. He was like her. Surely she could show a little respect and kindness for a while. Unless he truly didn’t deserve it.
”You’re right, of course. Your business isn’t mine. Sorry.’ This change of heart would surely seem a little strange to him, but Mai knew why she was doing this. He brought with him a sense of the familiar and in general, she tended to warm up to those that held something similar to her. Such as a likeness for animals… or in this case, background. Heritage. ”But you can see why I’d wonder…” She was certain he understood why she questioned his motives for beng at the zoo. Perhaps he was a cop. This made her a bit nervous. She looked around him, searching for badges. She was a bit naïve to immediately assume that she was correct in believing that he was a law officer come after her, but it was obvious why she would think that. She tended to stir up ruckus at homes. Stealing their food. Drinking their beverages. Watching a little t.v. from now and then. But the cops couldn’t possibly know it was her. Could they?
Chewing her lower lip for another second, she decided that he probably was a cop and that she was just being nervous. She let a slightly nervous smile rise up again. Changing the subject, she said I can’t help but notice your accent…Are you-- Well, if it’s not prying—Are you from Russia?”
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Post by Lev Milokov on Jan 6, 2011 16:21:26 GMT -5
To keep suspicious or curious eyes from drawing their way, Lev stood behind the bench as if he were having a normal, everyday conversation. Nothing about his body language showed the same thing as his attitude. If one were to look at him, he'd actually seem quite relaxed. He also kept his tone down a bit, but not to a whisper. It was simply so that the two of them could hear, and no one else, except for anyone who may've walked close enough and listened in. However, everyone seemed to busy themselves with either children, or the animals. And just for a moment, Lev's gaze caught site of a younger girl, probably around five or six years old. She was standing by one of the lion exhibits, and was about to toss a hot dog in (ketchup included), when her mother stopped her just in time. She had tried to feed the lion, unaware of just what she was doing.
It reminded Lev of both Markov, not in the sense that Markov would've done the same, but just the curiosity. It also reminded him of his own childhood though, and how he never got to do such things. Nearly all of it was him being taught how to fight, kill, and survive. He never really got to have any fun, and hey, maybe that's what contributed to him being an ass. However, Lev never liked it when people felt sorry for him for that. He felt that having Markov around made up for it all. And now a days, there were times where he found himself wondering whether or not he should quit hunting. It took up so much of his time, and he hardly got to be around with his family because of it. Yet, hunting was in his blood. So despite how much of a hassle and pain it could be, he still loved it. If he stopped hunting, Lev wouldn't be Lev.
Those thoughts left his mind just as quickly as they came though, and he focused his attention back on the shifter. He had done so just in time to hear her apologize, which was something he didn't expect. "You should be." He added in, still sticking with the snark attitude. It was hard to keep him away from being an ass, but it wasn't entirely impossible. One way to please him, was drinking. Offer him some booze, and more than likely, he'd gladly accept. Sure, it might've been a bit stereotypical to think that way since he was Russian, but it was true. He loved his drinks, more specifically the expensive ones. So if you could get him drunk and you didn't piss him off, you'd see an entirely different side to the hunter. He was no longer an ass, but uh...well, your typical sort of drunk.
However, it was more than obvious that he couldn't get drunk here. He also couldn't get drunk while working, so alcohol was easily out of the picture for the time being. Still though, there was one other method that could possibly draw him away from his usual attitude. That was through distraction. In rare instances, if you brought up something that was interesting to him, you could redirect things. And apparently, the shifter had found one of those rare instances. When she brought up his accent and him being from Russia, his gaze shifted from looking at the things in front of him, to looking at her. "I am." He said to her. "Why do you ask?" Lev's tone now lacked the snark that it had previously. In its place was a hint of interest, but the sterness remained. ---------- Tag: Maira
Word Count: 628
Notes: -
Lyrics: I don't care - Apocalyptica
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