Is forgiveness on sale? {Open to anyone}

[sven]

Time: 15:47 PM
Date: March 10th
Place: The Troll Market
Status: Open to anyone.

Dodging assorted cloth covered disfigured bodies with ease, Sven made his way through the Troll Market, his tail flicking elegantly behind him. As elegant as it could when being bent to the right. Wearing a black coat, jeans and a plaid gray hat, he stuck out among the other market goers as any of them would on a street in Manhattan in broad daylight. Save the tail. He made a point of showing it off as much as he could when here, so no-one would mistake him for a lost human and thereby suitable for anything between a punching bag and baked kitten stuffing.

Today though his mind was occupied with something very much more important than his immediate survival, namely the peace of his house. Ingegerd was mad at him, again. And this time it looked like it would take something quite extraordinary for her to forgive him. Not like it was such a big deal though, really. All he'd done was call that girl who'd interviewed Ingegerd as a prospective roommate and told her that he was SO grateful someone would be willing to let his kleptomaniac, bipolar, drug-using daughter into their home...

She'd thrown a potted plant through the window. And screamed. And cried. The crying was really the worst every time. It had become a tradition of his to take off to New York for a couple of days every time they had one of these fights, just to escape the first days worth of tears. But still, she was only 24, he could simply NOT allow her to take that much responsibility yet! Even more so because of what they were - what if the other girl had walked in on her during the shower and saw the tail? No no, it was much better if she stayed with him for a few more years and learned to use her powers better so she could take care of herself. She'd realize that too eventually. Hopefully. Best to buy something really nice to make sure she would.

Spotting a market stand with jewelry, Sven made his way over. Ingegerd was really not much for trinkets, but one never knew, maybe if he just found the right one...

"Oh, a troll of the northern forests, eh?" Said the owner of the stand, an ancient, tiny troll lady sitting on a chair behind the table. Her ears were larger than her face, pierced to impossibility and so littered with earrings that is was a miracle her skinny neck didn't break. "You looking for something special?"

"Ah, yes, something nice for my daughter. Maybe a necklace..."

"Ooh, I got just the perfect one here!" The little lady bent down and whipped up the most horrendous necklace, beads matched with feathers and sharp beer teeth. When looking closer, the beads were actually Hello Kitty!heads. "Look at this, very much the style nowadays with them young girls! Old world meets the new one!"

"Er, I think she would prefer something a little more...simple."

"Oh, I can take the feathers off!"

[freddy]

A groan escaped the girl that was lying on a dirty, slightly wet, wooden table - and those gathered around her murmered and whispered to each other, though the one that seemed to be addressing the group assured them that everything was fine. Behind the large troll that was now telling the group that "they would still get their meat" was a cart that was a bit larger than others in the troll market - and a giant sign, obviously hand-painted by the troll (it looked like a three year old might have done it) that said 'Fresh Meat'.

Slowly but surely, the girl's eyes fluttered open, and she nearly had a heart attack when she saw a great ugly beast with a meat cleaver, about to swing it down upon her. With a gasp and a small yelp she launched herself up off from the table and into the group of people (Wait a second, they weren't even people!), running into more than a few of them. What in the hell were they? Not even bothering to stay and find out, she managed to push her way throug them, and take off in a sprint in a random direction, anywhere to get away from those.. creatures!

The group surrounding the cart now turned to the cart's owner, not looking too pleased. "You said that werewolf meat was one of the best! And now we ain't got any!" One of the angry goblins cried out, shaking his fist. "I apologize," the cart owner began, backing up a bit, "But I also said it was very rare... Because things like that," He pointed to the running girl, "Happened quite a lot. You never know when they are going to turn back... Or wake up."

Meanwhile, with the girl who was currently running for her life, her heart beat was racing and she was sweating more than she ever had before. Everywhere she looked, there was odd looking creatures, speaking in languages that sounded like gibberish to her - and the ones that spoke English were either asking her to buy something, or calling her out for being a human. Not knowing what to do, she continued running, until she ran straight into someone - and bounced off of the large figure, to the ground.

With an 'oomph!', she landed on her behind, peering up at whoever she had just run into - hoping it wasn't one of the monsters. Amazingly enough... It wasn't. Was he human? She didn't even notice her tail, all she cared about was that he looked human and that was good enough for her. Scrambling to her feet, she had a look of desperation on her face - completely ignoring the other creature that was trying to sell the man a necklace.

"Please, you have to help me," She began frantically, trying to keep her eyes on him so she didn't have to look at the horrors around her, "I-I... I don't belong here!" Or did she? She was a werewolf after all.. Now that she thought about it... Perhaps that was why she was here. She tried to think back to last night - it had been a full moon, she remembered the pain of turning... Almost attacking someone in an alley, next to some meat-packing warehouse... And then it went black. And she woke up here, with some monster with a butcher knife talking about 'werewolf meat'. Was he going to kill her and eat her? ...Or sell her to those other people to eat? Was this a nightmare?

[sven]

Sven yelped and jumped when he felt someone run right into him, almost turning into a ball of yarn to escape. It turning out to be a young, athletic woman, begging him for help only confirmed this to be the best course of action. A frightened and very obviously human woman asking for help in the Troll Market most likely meant that she was to be sold - as a slave, meat or skin.

Whatever the reason, whoever caught her would soon come looking for her, and Sven knew better than to mess with his cousins' affairs. Of course he was no rooter for eating the species he mostly identified with, but hey, better them than him. Much better.

"Oh, well... The exit's that way. " He waved his hand in the direction he thought she'd come from, starting to withdraw as he scanned the crowd for anyone approaching with a purpose. He preferred not to turn among people, so they wouldn't know what to look for. He'd duck into a corner, do it and then roll off.

"Oy, where are you going?! We have a deal to wrap up here!" The troll lady nagged, waving the awful necklace at Sven. "Never mind tonight's special, she'll get picked up soon. OY, ANYONE'S LOST THEIR HUMAN?! SHE'S RIGHT OVER HERE!"

[freddy]

Freddy flinched ever so slightly at his yelp - normally, she'd try to pull the whole 'I'm tough, don't mess with me' act - but after seeing some of the things that she had seen in the past... Oh, I don't know, two minutes, she was scared out of her wits. She stared up at him with wide eyes, and when he finally spoke, waving his hand in the same direction she had come - she gave him a highly confused, slightly put-off look. She was pretty sure that the exit wasn't that way, and why was he being so calm about all this? Wasn't he a human, too?

Just as she was about to open her mouth to speak to him again, the troll-lady-thing that was next to them began to speak, and Freddy finally realized that she was actually there. Almost taking off and running again at the site of the horrible creature (and that awful necklace), Freddy forced herself to stay there, with the other human. Of course, when the troll started screaming that there was a human here, Freddy panicked - and she did what she knew might distract all these monsters long enough for her to get out of here.

In a quick, very rash, moment, she turned to face the troll-lady and the cart that was before her - and like something out of one of the 'Hulk' comic books, she grabbed ahold of the cart, and with a bit of strain, lifted it over her head, and proceded to throw it into the crowd - which included that first monster that she had seen, with the meat cleaver, who was running their way.

Now that she had succesfully distracted the majority of the creatures in here, she turned to the only one she felt might help her, and this time - she put on the tough girl act - if he had just seen her use her strength that was more than most humans could manage, maybe he would be afraid of her... Hopefully. She grabbed ahold of the collar on his shirt, and tanked him down to her level. "You're going to get me out of here." She said in a low tone, staring directly into his eyes - with a threatening look... But at the same time, somewhere in there, was a pleading, desperate look - he was her only hope of getting out of here... Alive.

[sven]

Sven was in no way a monster or an unemphatic man. At the woman's obvious confusion over his casual dismissal of her plea for help, there was a tug at his heart. However she'd ended up here, she didn't deserve whatever her fate would be. The fact that there was nothing he could do to change this made him keep his resolve rather easily though. He had no strength, and if he tried to help anyway, he'd end up getting the same treatment at her. Even if he looked human, he wouldn't die for one.

Then the troll lady started screaming and he jumped again, high enough to see a very angry and large troll with a meat cleaver plowing through the crowd in their direction. He was about to turn and bolt when the woman suddenly grabbed the cart and its owner in the process, hurling them both at her pursuer. The troll lady shrieked like a train whistle while sailing through the air, silenced by the loud crash when the cart was shattered against the ground. Pieces of wood and assorted Hello Kitty!jewelry flew everywhere, piercing or scratching several bystanders who took up where the troll lady's screaming had ended. More than one of them were observant enough to have seen where the source of their pain had come from. And had no intention of letting retribution wait.

Sven literary felt all the color from his face drain and was about to shift when suddenly the woman had grabbed the collar of his shirt and yanked him down. Meeting her weird, intensive eyes as she now demanded his help he realized this was no human. Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap - what the hell was he supposed to do now?! With her strength, she could do as much damage to him as the other trolls. Her grip was also the reason he couldn't change into a hare or a ball of yarn and flee - he couldn't shift into another shape as long as someone was holding onto him.

Trying to trick her to be able to escape, he hissed, "Let go of me and I will!" Whatever sympathy he could have felt for her as a human was quite thoroughly wiped away by the discovery that she wasn't one - she seemed more able to defend herself than he was!

[freddy]

Freddy didn't move for a moment, staring up at him with narrowed eyes - though she wasn't glaring at him. She seemed to be searching his eyes, seeing if he was being truthful... She was pretty confident that she was a good judge of character, and, as they say, 'eyes are the window to the soul'... Or whatever. He seemed more scared than anything, but she was still suspicious... But she knew what she could do, just in case.

She took in a large sniff - and got more scents that she wanted to - but she could pick out the man's amongst the others. She marked his scent in her mind, now she would be able to track him if he tried to run once she let him go. Once that was done, she let her fingers loosen a bit, but she didn't let go entirely yet. After casting a glance over her shoulder to make sure those creatures hadn't fully recovered yet (which they hadn't), she turned back to him.

"Look, I don't wanna hurt you," She started, getting a slightly less threatening look on her face, "But I need to get out of here. Once you get me out, I'll leave you alone, I swear... Please." WIth that being said, she hoped he might at least be a good (albeit forcably) samaritan, and take her out of here... And so, with the hopes that she could trust him now, she let go of her grip on his collar, and got ready to follow him - whether he took off in the attempt to get away from her, or actually tried to lead her out. Hopefully, he would choose the latter of the two options.

[sven]

It took all of Sven's self control not to flinch when the woman considered his proposal. God, would she just stop looking straight at him with those freaky eyes?! His heart sank even more when she took a deep breath, appearing to taste the air. She was memorizing his scent, he'd been around a few creatures that could do this. Meaning escaping from her would be very, very difficult. Even in another form, his scent did not change. His suspicions were confirmed when she loosened her grip slightly and cast a glance over her shoulder.

Crap, crap, crap, why did she had to cling onto him of all people?! Did he look like someone who helped random strangers?! Then she turned back to him, "Look, I don't wanna hurt you." Her face softened as she spoke, "But I need to get out of here. Once you get me out, I'll leave you alone, I swear... Please." Being a creature of trickery, Sven knew better than to trust an honest face, especially in this world. And even if she did mean it, it didn't change the fact that he would have a lot of explaining to do the next time he came here, if he could come back at all. Thanks a lot sweetheart!

Still, that she wasn't human made things a little bit better, though it also meant that he didn't have much of a choice in what course of action to take. He was not gonna risk being mauled for escaping from her. When she let him go, he nearly spat, "Hope you can run fast."

And he took off, running for all he was worth. Despite the extra pounds, he still had the speed and endurance of his youth. He ducked in behind some larger shapes to hide them from their pursuers, walking calmly into another street to avoid drawing attention. before starting running again He didn't know this place too well, so he'd have to go in a circle to get back to the exit.

[freddy]

The instant she let go of him, she regretted it. She should have known he was going to run off like that, he wasn't exactly willing to help her. But, what he didn't know was that she was an athlete, and a good one at that (if she didn't say so herself), and she could probably outrun him any day. When he took off, she almost smirked slightly, she was always up for a race. Just as the troll that had been about to make her into lunch managed to get past the cart she had thrown his direction, she took off at a breakneck speed - her gymnastics training, as well as a bit of that werewolf blood, got her legs going even faster.

Even if he had gotten a head started, she was right on his tail (almost literally). For a moment there, though... She almost lost him. She saw him disappear beehind some particularly giant and horrid-looking... things, and hesitated for but a moment to follow, slightly afraid of what might lurk behind them. But, when she finally did, she saw him walking casually for a moment down another street... Before taking off again. Damn him!

As soon as she locked onto him again, taking a good sniff of the air to make sure she knew where he was going, she took off at a sprint again, her breath and heart rate slowly rising. Where was he leading her? She really hoped he was heading for the exit, because from the way it was looking, they were just going deeper into this... Whatever it was. At least she'd gotten away from that butcher-demon-troll thing. Of course, he could be leading her to something worse... But what was worse than a giant monster with a meat cleaver? She wasn't really sure.

[sven]

Carefully maneuvering through the smelly streets, Sven led the strange girl away from what he estimated would be the center of the commotion she had caused. He had no time to waste though, word traveled fast thanks to those damn little bogarts. When running was no longer necessary, he kept a fast pace, direction set at the exit. His tail flicked back and forth behind him, the coat now resting on his arm due to the perspiration of running. Seemed like he wasn't in such a great shape as he thought after all.

Any frustration over his lack of endurance was though overshadowed by his rage over being forced into helping this woman, as well as fear over what she might do to him when they were safely back out. But one step at the time. First, getting out. He came into a halt before the gate that protected this world from the human one.

He knew she was still with him, but he still cast a glance over his shoulder at her as he opened the lock. "Alright, you're here now - just keep walking straight ahead and you're out on the streets." And out of my hair, he mentally added as the door opened, bringing in a slight wind and smell of frozen, raw meat.

He was going to leave as well, but not until he'd seen her gone so no-one coming out after them would get the wrong idea. It would also make it harder for her tearing him to bits in some secluded alley if so was her intention.

[freddy]

It was as she was chasing after him when she finally realized that he himself wasn't entirely human - she caught sight of the tail that was moving this way and that behind him, and almost tripped over her own feet in her surprise. She hoped he wasn't going to turn around and try to attack her or something of the like, if the tail wasn't his only ability or power, she made a mental note to watch out for that thing... And to keep her eye out for any other un-human qualities.

Finally, he stopped in front of what looked like a giant lock, and she stared up at the thing, confused... Though it seemed oddly familiar. In her mind, a few memories and glimpses of it flashed, though she didn't really remember where they were from... Perhaps she had somehow snuck in behind another troll-demon-thing in her wolf form, they probably would have let her in... Or she had been brought in here, for whatever reason. She wasn't sure.

She watched the door open in awe, but was pulled out of her thoughts when he spoke to her again. Casting one glance over her shoulder, thankfully not seeing anyone that looked like they were after her, she turned back to him with a smal, thankful smile. Even if he wasn't human (it wasn't like she was herself), he had helped her, and she felt like she owed him something.. She stuck her hand in the pocket of her baggy shorts and searched around it for a bit - finally pulling out a crumbled twenty that he coach had given her for the week. She extended it to him, smirking slightly.

"I know you didn't want to help me, and I know this isn't much, but... Thank you," She said, hoping that it might make up for all the trouble she put him through... Though she doubted it. Eh, it was worth a try, right?

[sven]

Sven blinked. staring at the bill in the woman's hand. She was going to..? Gah, he couldn't take any of this anymore! "Yeah, yeah, whatever, just get out and we're even-"

"Sveeeeen, you son-of-a-rat half-human bum, I knew you had a hand in this!" A crony troll came stomping through the crowd to wards them. Sven didn't know him, but that he knew his name was all the information needed for deciding what course of action to take next. Jumping over the threshold, he pushed the combination for closing the door.

"If you're smart, never come near this place again." He said to the woman. If she truly had no intention of ever hurting him, it didn't cost him anything to give her that advice. A sudden snap of vision, and he turned into a ball of yarn, rolling away in lightning speed. He wouldn't try to open the door out to the meat storage right away, but rather hide somewhere in the shadows until the danger was over. If the woman had any wits, she'd focus more on getting away herself than tracking him.