Vengeance

"Do not go gentle into that good night." Simon Loran. Bookstore Clerk. Norse God of vengeance. All around Mess.

[swearyourlovesforme]

[itsqueenaphrodite]

"Well, I don’t know your name, so I think that’s how I’m supposed to call you?" She raised an eyebrow with a defiant smile. Aphrodite stopped for a moment to think if she should use her seduction powers over him, that would be fun. But no, she was Alice now, not Aphrodite. No powers. When his fingers touched hers, she brushed the backs of his fingers and smirked. "Miss? So cute." She put the book in her purse and took her money, placing it on the table. "Thank you so much, mister. I appreciate your effort to find this book." She started to make her way to the door but she stopped and turned around to glance at him one more time. "And… It’s Alice. Not that it’s going to change something.”

[simonloran]

Cute. Simon was sure this girl could wrap any man around her finger just by batting those lashes. She was a vision to be sure, and one he wouldn't mind adding as a notch to his bedpost. Alice, huh? He'd remember that.

"I'm Simon...y'know, in case you want to write it in your diary later. 'Dear diary, today I met the man of my dreams. His name is Simon. I kissed him right before I left the store. I couldn't resist.' That sound about right?"

[theyoungangus-deactivated201505]

{&}—"First off, Yea's never made an antology o' 'is poems.  So dis book wouldn' be wort near fifty bucks even if i' were actually a first edition.  Secon', de name is AENGUS.  A-E-N-G-U-S——AENGUS ye bleedin' imbecile, not anus ye feckin' ceann cac."

[simonloran]

"Look--" he said, eyes meeting the boy's, "I don't give a flyin' fuck. Do you want the book or not?" 

[ofheavensandlightning-deactivat]

Elias cracked a smile as he wound his hands together. This one had a mouth on him. The young ones all did. Confident, bright-eyed. What did they know? He wasn’t the type to remain bitter. He had far too much to allow that to poison his demeanor.

"Oh you too?" He said with a dry laugh. "Poor girl hasn’t had a break all evening."

He leaned across his desk and pointed to one of the chairs against the far wall. They had been put in the room for a reason, but more often than not, they never found much use. 

"I suggest you use one of those. Much better for your back," he intoned as he settled back into his chair and crossed his legs. "As for my name, it’s Greek and I’ll gladly tell you all about it when you tell me yours."

[simonloran]

He'd had a turn with Eileen after this man did? ...Simon didn't like that--not one bit. He deserved more than some blowhard's sloppy seconds. "Really? You plugged her first?" he asked, quirking a brow. "Shame. Usually, after I'm finished with a girl, she's too sore and spent to want to go another round. But y'know, to each, his own." 

There. That oughta do it. It was a metaphorical blow to Zurlo's manhood...right after Eileen's literal blow. 

Simon kicked his feet up, a shit-eating grin on lips. "No, thanks. I'm comfortable here. And I'm Simon Loran. Tell me about yourself, Zurlo."

[jade-rollins]

Jade bit down a smile. She was anything but a girl. If only he knew that she was Queen Persephone of the Underworld, the Bringer of Light.

"And, if I may, how many ‘pretty’ girls have you fed that line?"

[simonloran]

Pretty little mortal. Oh, how easy they were to bend and break as he pleased. Simon was sure she'd beg for him in no time. Who wouldn't want a chance to be with a god?

"Just you, sweetheart," he lied. "Cross my heart."

[okappoline]

Appoline seized her chance, noticing that the man’s anger had become somewhat dormant for the moment. She chose her words carefully, annunciating each one slowly and void of malicious intent.

"Well think about it. All I wanted to do was pay for my books. And I saw that look in your eye, you would have knocked me out cold with one of these books had you really wanted to. But why, Simon? What have I done to you?" Her eyes searched his for an answer, they flickered back and forth, trying to read his dilating pupils like a novel.

[simonloran]

Was she that fucking delusional? Had she not intentionally shoved books off the shelf on purpose? To make him pick it up? "Appoline, you daft li'l idiot," he said. Simon walked towards her, hands shoved in his pockets to keep them from wrapping around her throat. "You provoked me. I dunno if this victim card you pull works often, but it sure as hell isn't gonna work on me."

Her eyes were trained on his, searching for something. But what? "You have your fuckin' book," he spat. "What else do you want from me?"

[milosamuels]

Milo liked the way this man thought. “Well, I’m not one for eating while enjoying myself, though I do see how those two are similar. Fighting has no place in sex. I don’t see how that’s enjoyable, but to each his own. A party is a party either way,” he said, his brow raising.  ”Are you sure I can’t see those love books?

[simonloran]

"You're missin' out, my friend. Sometimes I get ladies real pipin' mad. They smack the shit out of me and then we kiss and make up and have the best shags of our lives. A few smacks while we're fuckin', too, but that's 'cos I usually ask for it." Simon walked down the aisle, eyes roaming over a row of self-help books. "I never said I wouldn't help you. I'm sure we can find somethin' on...what'd you call it? 'Settlin' down and being emotionally supportive' or some shite like that."

[theyoungangus-deactivated201505]

{&}—For a split second, Angus considered putting this man through a wall.  "No. . . Aengus.  Ain-gus."  The boy enunciated.  "Are ye sure dis book is wort fifty dollars?  I wasn' quesionin' i', bu' now I'm no' so sure."  He said, his tone sharp.

[simonloran]

"Doesn't matter to me how you pronounce 'anus,' mate," he said, rolling his eyes. "You questionin' my integrity? That's offensive. It's fifty dollars cos' it's a first edition print. If you don't want to buy it, you can read about the wanderin' anus somewhere else."

[jade-rollins]

”"I won’t, but that doesn’t mean someone else won’t." Jade carefully took the book. She wasn’t sure how to react to this man. He was incredibly cocky and forward. Jade sized him up, looking him up and down before responding, "That’s alright, I’m sure you have plenty of little secrets with other girls."

[simonloran]

He didn't share secrets with anyone, really. Simon had no one to trust in this great big shithole of a city. Who could he trust with his real identity? A mortal? The idea was laughable.

"You wound me, sweetness," he said. "I don't share little secrets with other girls. Only pretty ones. Like you."

[itsqueenaphrodite]

"Please, don’t pretend you weren’t looking." She rolled her eyes with a soft smile and pulled a piece of paper from her purse. "I’m looking for these mythology books." She handed it to him and shook her head. Was he really treating her like just another girl? No. "Not even close, mister."

[simonloran]

He was looking, but how couldn't he be? In any case, he wasn't about to admit it to her. She was too high and mighty for her own good--probably because she was used to men throwing themselves at her. Well, he wasn't a man. Simon was a god. One that didn't need to stoop to kissing her ass in order to have a good shag. "Mister, huh? S'cute." He pulled a book off the shelf and handed it to her, his fingers trying to linger on hers as he made the exchange. "Here's the only one you need, miss. Norse mythology."

[okappoline]

Appoline took a breath through her nose, filling her lungs with much needed air. She plucked the five dollar bill off of the table and stuffed it into her wallet. She was just about to spin around on her heel and walk away from him when his next words halted her movement. She turned to face him, brows furrowed and eyes confused but perceptive. 

"Why do you do that?" She inquired, approaching the man like a prey tip toeing to it’s predator. 

[simonloran]

She should have left. It would have been safer, would have been smarter had she just left well enough alone. But it was so like humans to pick and pick and pick. They wanted more; they never knew when to stop. He imagined wrapping his hands around her skull and driving it against the wall, dashing her brains against the wood. But Simon restrained himself, just for a moment, because the girl had piqued his interest.

Why did he do that? "Do what?" he asked.

[nxelles-deactivated20141018]

They said trouble had its way to attract anyone; even her, who stood so firmly. There was something about the male with those piercing eyes; something that set her ablaze. And never did she feel as if she was burning alive, but she loved it. However, never would Noelle admit, nor show, that a part of her felt like a teenage girl who just had her first kiss. As she slowly walked away, pressing the book against her chest, a small smirk graced her lips, the glass table she passed by cracking slightly.

     ❝ I don’t think I am. ❞

[simonloran]

Simon bristled at the sound of cracking beneath his fingertips, jagged lines appearing like fault lines across the glass casing. Had the pretty, little girl done this? Perhaps Simon wasn't the only one in hiding. A smile split his lips as he watched her leave, eyes taking her in appreciatively.

This wouldn't be the last time he saw her. The city was big to a mortal, but it was small to a god.

"Goodbye, pretty girl," he murmured.

He'd find her. They'd meet again.

[jade-rollins]

Jade was more than startled by the man’s words. Her eyes widened and she averted her gaze from the bookshelf behind his head to his face, “N-no, just looking at that horticulture book there.” She pointed behind him, “Smoking indoors is illegal nowadays, by the way.”

[simonloran]

Horticulture? Who gave a fuck about horticulture? He stepped aside anyway and pulled the book down for her. "Oh yeah? And who's gonna tell on me? You?" He handed her the book and took another drag of his cigarette. "Why don't we keep this our little secret, darling? We can have many li'l secrets if you so choose."

[itsqueenaphrodite]

Aphrodite let out a smirk and stared back at him. “Who? Me? No, you’re the one who’s looking at me. Actually, yeah, I’m looking for a book. Nah, not even. I know it’s an excuse to talk to me.”

[simonloran]

What a tease. He couldn't understand a fucking thing she was saying, but he didn't care. A girl like her could read the telephone book and he'd still pretend he was interested. "Yeah, yeah, I'm sure. What's your name, pretty girl? Lemme guess. Stephanie? No...Jessica?"

[theyoungangus-deactivated201505]

{&}—"A lo' o' librarians know a few."  He chuckled, handing him the money.  "Off de top o' me own 'ead. . . De Song o' Wanderin' Aengus."

[simonloran]

Fantastic. He'd overcharged, but it looked like the boy didn't give a damn. Simon would pocket the money for later to spend on booze and girls....More the former than the latter. "Who the fuck is that? Wandering Anus? A walkin' bum-hole? Sounds fuckin' weird."

[okappoline]

The feeling of pity for the man before her overwhelmed Appoline for a moment. She shook her head and bent down to sweep up the fallen books in her arms. The pages were bent and the covers had been damaged, tracks of a shoe embedded on the surface. But a book was a book. In silence, she placed a forty dollar bill on the front desk, having already calculated the cost. 

"I’ll be needing the change, then." Her tone had lowered several tones, but remained at a levelled simplicity with a tenacious edge. 

[simonloran]

And just like that, she finally did as she was ordered. She was obedient--just as she should be. Simon's fury fizzled his jaw unclenched. His desire to see her skull broken and her blood spattered on the walls was dissipating. He scooped the forty dollars from the counter and slipped it into the register. He didn't know or give a damn how much the books cost, but he took out a five-dollar bill and slid it across the glass to her.

"You don't knock a man's books over in his own bloody store. Fuckin' disrespectful, y'know."

[ofheavensandlightning-deactivat]

Are you looking for a job or has something else caught your eye? Perhaps someone? There are a few positions available here at Zurlo Enterprises. Fancy yourself filling one of them? I can’t say whether or not barging into my office helped your chances, though.

[simonloran]

Just lookin' for a place to lay down for a second. Fucked a girl's brains out right outside your office. One of your employees, I think. An Eileen or somethin' like that. I'm spent.

Zurlo is a funny name. What's it mean anyway?