Case 122 [Accidental Video/Action]

[manofgnee]

[It's a bit odd for Hanna, not being home on the Day of the Dead. It messes up all his personal traditions...but he's fine with trying something new.

Hanna's tired, and he looks just a little sad, but he's still smiling as he goes through the graveyard. In one hand is a large bouquet of bright yellow marigolds, the other hand has a box filled with cookies. He tried to bake his own, but that really didn't work out.]

I hope they don't mind that I didn't make em...though, they probably would prefer store bought over my homemade monstrosities. Haha!

[Hanna laughs slightly, before he gets started, going over to a grave and sitting down in front of it. He pulls out a marigold and a few cookies, placing them on the grave. He stays at the grave for a few minutes, just talking to it, before he moves on to another grave, repeating the process.

It's the Day of the Dead. Even the dead of the City deserve something special...the dead don't all have names, or properly cared for headstones...or even names that Hanna knows. How long have they been here, who were they?

Well, regardless, they deserve something special, a little respect on a special day.]

...shoot, I hope I got enough cookies and flowers...shoot, I hope they like cookies...Maybe I should come here more often...it's sort of nice.

Hah, I wish Gallahad was here. I'd make it his best day ever! We could even pretend it was his birthday!

[He laughs again, before smiling slightly and turning back to the grave he's sitting at now, in the back of the graveyard.]

Hee, sorry. Went off on a bit of a tangent there...anyway, where were we?

[He goes back to talking to the grave, moving to another one after a few more minutes. This is his plan for the day.

After all, he can't visit the graves at home, so make do with what you got?]

Comments

action;

[manofgnee.livejournal.com]

[Hanna blinks, looking up and around for a second. He thought he heard something...]

Re: action;

[spiritofsorrow.livejournal.com]

[Sorrow watches Hanna for a moment -- the man was speaking to the stones, so does that mean he can see the spirits also? But Hanna doesn't have that focused look, the eyes locked onto empty air, the sense of interaction. He's talking to something, yes, but not to another voice. His expression turns to its usual rueful close-lipped smile, worn out, but still there.]

Pardon me. I did not intend to interrupt.

action;

[manofgnee.livejournal.com]

Oh, no, sorry!

I just thought it'd be nice to come down here, cuz of the day and all...

action;

[spiritofsorrow.livejournal.com]

[He waves the statement aside.]

There is no need to apologize.

...Can you see them also? [No need to jump to conclusions, after all.]

action;

[manofgnee.livejournal.com]

Not all the time, I'm afraid...but I know they're here. I wish I could see them, though...it'd make talking to them a lot easier.

Re: action;

[spiritofsorrow.livejournal.com]

[He wants to see them...]

Unfortunately, I can only show the spirit world itself to those who are dying, or in the City, those who have died. You seem to be very much alive...but if there is someone here to whom you wish to speak, and who would agree, I could channel them for you and allow them voice.

action;

[manofgnee.livejournal.com]

I'm afraid I don't know anybody here...but every year, I go to the graveyard at home and talk to the graves there. Since its the Day of the Dead and all...

...Um...they don't mind me being here, do they? I didn't mean to bother them, I thought they'd just like some company, that's all.

Re: action;

[spiritofsorrow.livejournal.com]

[He sweeps his eyes across the graveyard. No one here is particularly thrilled about the City, and some of them are even glad they are here instead of suffering the Deities' torment...]

No, they don't mind your being here. You are respectful, and it is something like a breath of fresh air that someone knows they are still here. They aren't bothered, in general.

Don't worry. I've rarely seen a ghost who is angry because he is acknowledged.

action;

[manofgnee.livejournal.com]

I thought they might like some company today, that's all...they shouldn't be ignored just because they've passed on.

[He nods, before going and holding up a cookie.]

Cookie? I brought them for the ghosts, but I got a few too many here.

Re: action;

[spiritofsorrow.livejournal.com]

[Food! --That isn't what he needs to think about...so he turns away and politely holds up a hand, though the tightening in his expression hints that something isn't quite right. A flash of instinct, and his teeth bare just enough that pointed canines flicker across the gap.]

Ah...thank you, but no. I have some peculiar food intolerances right now.

You have experience with the supernatural, then? Most do not think so considerately of spirits, or of them at all.

action;

[manofgnee.livejournal.com]

Oh, I'm sorry...didn't know.

Yeah, I'm a paranormal investigator back home. Best job in the world.

They may be spirits...but they still have feelings.

Re: action;

[spiritofsorrow.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't give up what I can do, either -- although it is quite a trial, sometimes, and it once seemed as much of a curse at it was a gift.

It is good to hear from someone who understands.

action;

[manofgnee.livejournal.com]

No, I know the feeling, trust me...

Would you care to join me? I'm Hanna, by the way.

Re: action;

[spiritofsorrow.livejournal.com]

[He bows his head for a moment, then looks up, silvery albino eyes staring past his own lenses into Hanna's.]

For now...yes, I would much like to. But if I have to run, please take no offense. I have...something of a problem.

[He manages a non-smile, and there are the teeth again.]

I'm doing my best to get rid of it. But for now, I don't want to hurt anyone else because of it.

action;

[manofgnee.livejournal.com]

It's okay, I understand.

[He smiles and nods. He really does understand.]

Re: action;

[spiritofsorrow.livejournal.com]

[He manages to look relieved, at least for a moment.]

That is good. Then I will accompany you here.

action;

[manofgnee.livejournal.com]

Cool.

[He grins and nods for him to sit down.]

Re: action;

[spiritofsorrow.livejournal.com]

[He does so, leaning back and planting his hands behind him. He's pretty tired in the daylight, but he makes himself come out some -- it means he feels more human. Still, he's got skin the color of flour, and his cheeks are already starting to turn a little pink even in the afternoon sun.]

A paranormal investigator, then? That means that others call upon you to settle problems with the supernatural? Is the other side more malevolent in your world than in mine?

Re: action;

[manofgnee.livejournal.com]

It can be, yeah...sometimes its the paranormal that needs help, though, so the job goes both ways.

action;

[spiritofsorrow.livejournal.com]

That is fair...I suppose I served on both sides -- communicating to the spirit world when I lived, and back to the mortal world when I died. It isn't so easy in reverse, though.

action;

[manofgnee.livejournal.com]

[He nods quietly.]

Do you miss it? Being alive, I mean.

Re: action;

[spiritofsorrow.livejournal.com]

[He adjusts his glasses -- the left lens is broken, but at least he can realign the entire setup -- and smiles through a long and heavy silence.]

That is...an interesting question. Do I miss being alive, in general? Certainly. I never wished to die. I was never suicidal. Nor do I believe that my interactions are any better, now that I am hampered by my incorporeal state. So if I had been able to go on living and do more good in the mortal world, I would have no complaints.

[His eyes close, and as he tents his fingers, a faint bluish gleam ripples across the tips like water.]

But it was not meant to be. It is something of a long story, but in short, had I lived, another would have died, someone who would change the course of history forever, someone who was not meant to rest yet. It was either her life or mine, and the choice was clear.

I wouldn't change that moment for anything in the world.