empath

He loved this place. Sometimes he closed his eyes and imagined he was sitting in front of his house and his family was just inside. He felt sad being in a different place, but it had a lot of good qualities too. It was almost melancholic to be given a break from his magical destiny for a while. 

His songs had slowly started getting happier as he made his peace with being here. He knew home still existed and he could even see what was going on sometimes in his dreams. Dream-Steven had a lot of scary stuff going on, but no matter what he ate before bed, Steven couldn’t see what was happening next.

“Yep!” He grinned up at the stranger. “I came out to work on it, because it’s about the sun. Well, it’s inspired by the sun.” 

He slipped out of his sandals and pushed his feet into the sand. Noticing the strangers attire, he was reminded that even if he liked the sun, its rays were not so friendly. He reached into his backpack and took out a bottle of sunblock. He then squirted some in his hands and rubbed it all over his face.

“You want some? I bet you’re worried about wrinkles and stuff, huh?” Steven offered the bottle.

“You’re a talented musician then.  Not many people can compose their own music.”  He could definitely hear how it was inspired by the sun; the pleasant melody was upbeat but not overwhelmingly so.  Jasper watched the young boy lather sunscreen all over his face -- at least he was being safe -- and half smiled as he offered him some.

“No, I’m not worried about wrinkles.  I’m just...sensitive to sunlight.”  That was probably the best way to explain it.  “Thank you for the offer.  My clothes keep me protected enough.”  He pulled his ball cap lower on his face again before finally deciding to sit down in the sand.  He wasn’t worried about getting sand all over his clothes as he was that he wouldn’t be able to actively avoid the sunlight as well.

He sat cross-legged in front of the boy and smiled.  “I hope you don’t mind if I sit and listen for awhile.  My brother used to compose music and I guess I miss it sometimes.  Although his talent involved piano’s rather than string instruments.”  Jasper picked up a handful of sand and let it filter through his fingers as he reminisced for a moment.  Realizing he hadn’t yet introduced himself, he looked back at the boy and leaned forward slightly.

Cole nod-nod-nods in agreement. “Helping is hard, and it’s harder when they won’t let you, or don’t like how you do it. If people know about me, usually they get scared and tell me to get out of their heads. I try to make them forget me and just remember my words so they won’t be scared, but other people told me not to do that, either.”

Jasper’s way of feeling isn’t exactly the same as his, even if it’s the closest he’s ever experienced. He wouldn’t have had to ask these things, if he’d been the same as Cole - the way Cole doesn’t need to ask about him.

“I don’t read minds,” he says, a tiny little thread of annoyance twisting through his words, though it doesn’t reach itself towards Jasper. “Reading is… hard, and logical, and it all comes out in words - words chop up meaning into bits, make it clear and sectioned off and stop it from bleeding into itself and changing shape and tone. What Edward-the-little-brother does, that’s reading.”

Any annoyance is gone now, quick as it came; comparing means reaching out further, with almost-permission, listening to what’s there and comparing it to the echoes in himself and the discordant notes or the harmonies. “It’s like yours, but… more. More details, more people, more range, more intense - I feel the feelings like they’re mine, and I can follow them a very long way. Once I felt so much I thought I was the human boy I was feeling. I still don’t have any other name but his.”

Jasper nodded sympathetically.  “If people don’t know of my powers they don’t know I’m helping.  If they do, they usually don’t mind and in a case where they do mind, all they have to do is leave the room.”  He could feel the other’s slight pain at not being able to correctly help other people.  It was difficult, especially since his own version of this power was significantly more powerful than Jasper’s.

Jasper had a guilty smile on his face as realized this was a point of contention he’d brought up when he mentioned mind reading.  “So you’re more of a...visual person then?  I guess it’s true that words are very literal, but if you put the right ones together they can create beautiful landscapes or fantastic histories.  To each their own.  Reading isn’t for everyone, I know that.  I’m sorry for accusing you as such.”  Accusing wasn’t the right word, but it would suffice for now.  He didn’t want to scare the other off.

“It sounds like you have a lot on your plate.  I guess I feel their feelings as my own, but it’s not as intense.  I’m drawn to people with happier moods and feel sorrow for those in pain, more so than the average person.  The more intense the emotions the other is feeling the more they effect me.  Although I can’t say I’ve ever felt it like you have.  To feel like you are the person experiencing such powerful emotions sounds...unpleasant.”

Oh, so the beginnings and ends. It seems to be the middle portion that freaks others out, leaves a panic that crawls along those who aren’t expecting it. She feels a little bit better that the other isn’t scared, though the witch question makes her laugh. “I’m, not really. I’m not human.” That much is easy to explain, eyes tracking over the other. “And you’re not either.” 

She’s gotten much better at catching non-human types. They have a way about them, some more than her, some even less. It’s interesting though, and she adores the ability to talk to someone about it. “I’m a deity. A goddess.” That much is easy to explain in so many words. “Life is my entire modus operandi.” 

Pushing her hair back, she bobs her head in greeting. “Jasper.” Repeating names seems to help her remember. “My name’s Miriam, and it’s nice to meet you. Are you, new? Like, been here awhile. I know that sounds weird, but this place isn’t entirely normal either.” 

Jasper didn’t really react when she pointed out that he wasn’t human.  In his opinion, anyone with an extraordinary power was decidedly not human but he supposed it was different for anyone.  He quirked an eyebrow as she mentioned she was a goddess.  That was a new one for him.

“No, I’m not human.  At least I haven’t been for a long time.”  Jasper didn’t elaborate further; despite not having the Volturi here to watch his every move, he still didn’t feel comfortable admitting he was a vampire to just any random person he met on the street.  “That’s different.  A goddess walking among humans seems mythological.”

Kadoc almost jumped a bit from the sudden presence of another, turning to look at him before looking around. Didn’t seem to be anyone else in the immediate area. Was he talking to him? Or thinking out loud? Kadoc simply looked back at the water before deciding to respond. “Yeah… It is… The calm kind of… makes you feel calm yourself.” He said, kicking at the sand a bit. “…Only kind of though.” He looked downwards. “…..” He looked at the other. “… You come to the beach often?” He asked. 

Jasper could hear the sadness in the other’s voice as mentioned that the ocean could only ‘kind of’ calm you.  There was a pause before he spoke again; Jasper half smiled and shrugged.

“I’m new here, so I haven’t been to this beach much.  The beach in general...?”  He was contemplative for a moment.  “I guess I haven’t been in a very long time.”  Not since he was human at any rate.  “Beaches are difficult for me to get to, usually.”  That sufficed as an answer.  There was a silence only broken up by the sound of the tide.

It was a wonder how her bat managed to put up with being her personal little model, always dressing him up with all sorts of fashion. Always in some shade of pink adorned with pink. Or he was just use to it, considering how long they’ve been together? Either way, she was happy and all there is to it.

Draculaura heard footsteps first but it didn’t register that it was headed in her direction, much less coming down directly in front of her. She snapped out of her thoughts - thinking of her home, and Monster High - when someone crouched down in front of her. Immediately she caught the scent of something - vaguely familiar- but couldn’t put her finger on it.  Something she wouldn’t question just yet.

The vampire blinked at the other before a wide smile graced her features, something that hardly left. “He really is! His name is Count Fabulous and he’s absolutely charming! Though most would say otherwise; I can’t figure out why.” Not everyone liked bats and that was understandable but they were really cute. And friendly. 

Resting the handle of her parasol against her shoulder, the smile still on her face, her attention completely shifted from her pet to the stranger. “Oh, right, sorry. What’s your name? I’m Lala - or Laura, if you want.” Nicknames of course. Introductions always were important and she preferred the first ones to be nice. 

Count Fabulous?  That was a sickly sweet name, but seemed absolutely perfect for a bat dressed in pink.  Now that he was closer he could see that the bat seemed completely unbothered by his outfit.  “Count Fabulous is a nice name; I think it suits him quite well.”  How she managed to train a bat to wear clothes and stay out during the daytime was escaping him, but maybe somethings were better left a mystery.

“It’s nice to meet you Laura, I’m Jasper.”  After a moments consideration, he rolled backwards on his heels into a sitting position.  “You have a very interesting style.  Is your hair like that naturally?”  Under normal circumstances he would consider that to be a very, very idiotic question; however, her pink skin had to be natural, so by extension it was completely plausible that her hair was natural as well.  He was quickly realizing that not everyone was coming from the same ‘world’ as him, so to speak.

“Have Count Fabulous and yourself been here long?  I’m just getting adjusted myself.”  He quickly glanced at her fangs before maintaining eye contact again.  Her personality certainly didn’t scream vampire to him.  Her sunny disposition reminded him of Alice, but she was still too bubbly.  Jasper really couldn’t imagine her as a blood thirsty creature of the night -- despite her parasol and bat.  Still, it was worth some prodding.

It was easy enough to go through her this and that routines. She was fast finding habits to pick up in this city, places to be and to loiter in. Miriam made for an odd creature, given her detachment from humanity. Granted, she had no clue if she gave off a certain aura, or if it was just a fact of life, existing like this if it would take her words to prove her state. Perhaps it helped that she frequently displayed her powers in quiet ways.

The flowers had been bothering her the moment she showed up. It wasn’t difficult to care for those plants. Easy, in fact! Only neglect could kill something so hardy. So, she’d fussed over them for a time, trailing her fingers through the dead leaves and muttering praises for the efforts that had been made. 

She likely looked like a madwoman, and feeling self-conscious, left a blooming thing of her own wild creation behind. That one would be unlikely to die, with what she put into it. So Miriam escapes the area to settle on a bench.

“Me?” For a moment, the question has her baffled, as if she wasn’t aware of being watched. Now that she knows, Miriam tenses a bit, chewing on her lip. “Love them, actually. Did, did you see what I did? That’s the only reason I could think of someone asking about somethin’ like that.” She can’t get a feel on this guy yet, and settles for quiet observation.

Jasper crossed one leg onto his lap; he was avoiding eye contact for the time being.  “Yes, I saw that.  Well, I didn’t see it.  I saw you looking at the pot, and when you left there was a flower there.  I can’t really imagine another explanation.”  He finally turned his head to look at her.  “Are you a witch?”  Jasper could remember Bella jokingly mentioning that they needed a witch to fulfill their trifecta of monsters.

“Or can everyone magically create flowers where you’re from?”  That could be a distinct possibility, but the woman seemed almost embarrassed that he’d notice her fixing the dead flowers.  Maybe she wasn’t used to showing off.  “It’s an interesting power.  Being able to create life -- even if it’s only plant life -- seems like a nice gift to have.”  He turned away again and placed his hands in his lap.

“I knew someone who had a connection to the earth as well, but I don’t think he could make flowers.  Or, at least, he never tried.”  If he ever saw Benjamin again he’d like to ask him to give it a go.  He realized he was being very mysterious to the point that he was finding it unbearable himself and faced the woman once again.

► permanent starter call // plotter

8/20/18

if you like this you’re letting me know I can:

o1. I can hit you up in IMs or twitter or discord or...somewhere for plotting

o2. asks on meme day are cool

o3. we can plot relationships

o4. I can throw you a random starter [note: anyone can throw me a random starter I’m not picky]

o5. it’s cool for me to reply to your opens

relationships

► friends...?

jasper is friendly enough, but if you’re human he’ll probably uhhh always want to eat you?  he won’t [probably] but I’d still recommend getting injured elsewhere.  he likes being able to help people so I suppose if your muse is always down in the dumps he’d probably like to give them some sort of relief

► enemies...?

are you a bad smelling, awful, gross werewolf?  well this is the relationship for you!  werewolves are vampires natural enemies so jasper will be on edge constantly.  also, if you’re a vampire that drinks human blood he’s going to be rather disinterested in you as well.  although maybe he’ll put up with it.  essentially anyone who likes to cause senseless harm would probably call under this category.

► group therapy...?

if your muse also struggles in some way -- maybe not so far as to want to kill half the people they meet, but -- jasper would probably like to talk to them.  he doesn’t like to feel weak, and knowing other people are also having a hard time adjusting helps him feel less alone.

► hunting buddy...?

jasper has to take semi-frequent hunting trips to feed himself.  if your muse is undead, or otherwise has no blood pumping he would greatly appreciate you accompanying him on these sometimes lonely trips.

► other...?

pictured above is my common sense holding me back from posting more tonight.

took an awful long time to write all those while taking care of the puppy so (’: 

tomorrow I’ll be making a permanent plotter and stuff, probably also an open that multiple people can reply to.  alas, meme days are always on days I work so I can never properly participate but Perhaps next week

Jasper tugged at his long sleeves as he sat in the coffee shop -- not eating or drink anything, naturally -- while waiting for...something.  He wasn’t sure what, but something compelled him to sit here as he scrolled through his phone.  He felt that this place dulled his senses; while he hadn’t hunted in awhile he didn’t feel hungry even when surrounded by all these people.  Jasper noticed movement out of the corner of his eye and moved his head imperceptibly to look.

A woman was standing outside, looking at the dead plants in the pot sitting in front of the window.  Jasper could sense she was feeling a bit morose at the sight.  His eyes returned to his phone as he desperately clicked the internet browser, only to once again get a message that said he wasn’t yet allowed to use their internet services.  This was completely and totally unhelpful, but he supposed he couldn’t complain.  The phone was free.

When he looked up again he saw that the woman was gone, but a single flower was blooming in the pot, swaying gently in the small breeze.  Jasper blinked before getting out of his seat; the bell on the door jingled as he left the shop.  He crouched in front of the pot and examined the plant, which looked very unlike any flower he had personally seen.  He turned his head to the left to see the woman sitting on a bench not too far ahead.

There was a moment’s hesitation -- it really wasn’t his business -- but he finally approached her, sitting next to her on the bench.  Jasper was silent for a moment.

To say he was surprised to see Jacob Black was probably wrong.  He had a feeling that in a place like this he would end up seeing lots of things he didn’t expect to find.  It was of some comfort to see Jake without his shirt on -- somethings never change.  The werewolf was plodding along ahead of him; Jasper knew he was likely actively ignoring him considering there was no way he wasn’t noticing his sent -- not that Jasper thought he smelt any better.

On any other occasion he would let this go, but currently Jacob was the only other person he knew in this place and it would make him feel slightly more sane if he could just talk to him and make sure this was real.  No, he knew it was real, he was actually significantly more curious if Jacob could still turn into a wolf.  While he and Jake had a healthy respect for one another, he was still not entirely comfortable of being the only one in the Cullen family currently around.

He kept pace with him for a few minutes; Jacob didn’t seem to speed up anymore but nor did he slow down.  Jasper had a feeling that if he could read Jake’s mind it would currently just be a string of profanities with some ‘bloodsucker scum’ mixed in for effect.  Finally he sped up so that he was walking next to the werewolf at a very leisurely place.

Was she hard core LARPing a vampire, or was she a vampire?  Jasper was watching the small girl from a distance.  She was twirling a parasol and sitting in the shade; he could physically see light glinting off her fangs when she smiled, and she -- literally -- had a pet bat with her.  Dressed in pink.  Actually, the bat was rather cute, but it was certainly being used as a fashion statement in juxtaposition to her own impossibly pink outfit.

Fascinating.

After several minutes of intense deliberation, Jasper finally moved to go ask.  A group of girls that had been standing near him jumped at the sudden movement; he’d been concentrating so hard that he must have seemed statue-like.  He pulled his ball cap down further to shield his face as he walked across the slightly sunnier road.  Even as he grew closer he was still on the fence.  She had pointed ears that looked natural, and now he could see she had pale pink skin.  Even if she wasn’t a vampire, she certainly isn’t a pure human either.

Jasper knew that he was looming over her when he finally stood in front of her, so he crouched down with his hands on his knees.

There were no Volturi here to stop him from breaking their rules, but he also wasn’t exactly thrilled at the thought of being the most conspicuous person in the near vicinity.  Even though he was on the beach, he was wearing a long sleeved shirt and dark jeans; a baseball cap was on his head to shade his face from the sun.  It was actually a bit thrilling to be at the beach -- he’d only ever been to beaches in cold, wet areas since he became a vampire.  Jasper couldn’t even remember how the ocean breeze felt; human memories were so weak.

There weren’t many people on the beach today; it was slightly overcast, but nothing that would cause it to rain.  The ocean tide was gently rolling over the sand.  It was very different from the rocky coasts with violent waves that he was used to.  Jasper was barely listening to the chatter around him, although he did hear someone point out his peculiar beach day outfit.  As he continued to drift along the shore he heard ukulele music playing quietly just ahead of him.  There was a young boy strumming the instrument contentedly.

He was radiating such positive feelings that Jasper was unconsciously drawn towards him.  Most of the more auspicious emotions he’d been feeling were faked deep down, and he could tell.  Soon enough he was standing behind the boy, still as a statue.  Jasper took a moment to soak in the happy vibes the kid was giving off; soon he realized that if the other turned around he would give him a serious scare.  He wanted to walk off, but he was too interested in the boy now.  Only kids could ever give off such vibrant emotions.

Jasper quietly skirted around the kid and coughed into his hand to announce his presence.

There were negative waves of energy coming off of the younger boy who was currently going through some sort of training regimen.  It made Jasper just a little sad; it reminded him too much of the newborns he himself had forced into training day and night for a war they wouldn’t see much of in the end.  The kid couldn’t have been more than 13 or 14 and he already had such heaviness in his heart.

Although the limitations on his powers irritated him, he couldn’t help but use his gift on the boy -- anything to get rid of that scowl that seemed so misplaced on his face, even if it was only for 15 minutes.  As Jasper approached him, he projected a calm feeling that he hoped would help give the kid some temporary peace.  When he finally got close enough, he gave the other a bit of a sad smile.

“What’s so important that you need to be training out here at the break of dawn?”  Jasper didn’t even bother to comment on his clothing; he clearly wasn’t training for WWE Smackdown at any rate.  He tapped his chin pensively.  “You have pretty good form.  I’m surprised you’re able to concentrate that hard at your age.”  The mood change seemed to be helping, at least he thought.