To Break the Silence [Hermes]

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You know what had just occurred to Della? The first four months of 2011 had been…quiet. Perhaps it was necessary to be reminded of what that possibly meant after a year and a half of nearly nonstop drama. See, ever since arriving in Avalon, she had maybe a week or two of quiet every once in a while, and the rest of her time was full of being under spells, suffering amnesia, dealing with murderous bastards and bitches, fulfilling quests that she was doing to help a friend and trying to get away from really annoying suitors.

But since the clock struck midnight on January 1st of her eighteenth year, she had been actually able to go through a day to day routine doing her schoolwork, spending time with her friends that weren’t off being the Dread Pirate Roberts, and she hadn’t even heard much from Buttercup about Humperdinck lately, which could only mean that the pond scum that was passing for a human being, a prince no less, must have been quiet lately. How did this revelation even occur to Della? Well, it probably had something to do with the fact she had just gotten an A on her English paper, which basically meant that she hadn’t had too much drama to distract her from being here to, you know, learn.

Standing in the hallways she had grown very accustomed to, wide eyed at the praise she was getting for the paper that, admittedly, she had put good work into, but honestly, it didn’t occur to her that she was doing such good work because she felt so, dare she say, relaxed. She, Della Rachel Miller, uptight as hell, able to worry about the smallest thing at the drop of a hat….actually felt relaxed.

Being the pessimist she was, she was sure that it was too good to be true, but as she went over her life as of right now in her head, she realized that things had really been going well. So now the question was…how much longer until the world decided to throw drama at her like it always did? Because as much as she would’ve liked to think that this was just a result of her finally adjusting to Tintagel’s insanity, she knew for a fact that no quiet period lasted forever around here. You didn’t even need her typical pessimism to realize this.

Well…until that moment, she was going to embrace the peace and quiet. A grin spread across her face as she stuffed the essay in question in her ratty old bag, and started heading down the halls, contemplating what she could possibly do once she reached her dorm. She was pretty sure her darling dog deserved an extra long walk today because she was in that good of a mood.

Yeah. Because that was going to last.

[Hermes]

Teaching. He was expected to stand in front of a group of kids and talk about communications for hours at a time when he could be out wooing girls and annoying his brother. He'd only come here because he was pretty confident that he could rally up a decent fan base around these parts. So many Greek gods like himself had come here before him, no doubt they had brought on some believers. Now that people at least believed in the gods, it was his job to make them realize just how awesome he was. There were plenty of thieves and liars around here too, he could feel it. Plenty of party animals, those who loved languages, some just keen to travel. All his domain. He could pick them out as he walked down the hall. There a thief, there a traveler, almost all liars, there an athlete, there a...oh a writer. Thats interesting....and confusing.

You see, being a god of so many things, like Hermes was, things that you rule over sometimes had a tendency to...crossover into other gods domains. This most often happened with his brother Apollo, being that he was the god of poetry and Hermes the god of language and writing. So he had power over everything said or written, unless what was being said or written was a poem of some sort. Frustrating really, though he got the feeling that it annoyed Apollo the most. Anyway none of that was important here because this girl he'd zeroed in on didn't seem much of the super poetry type. Maybe occasionally, but nothing like the kind of person his brother would find particular interest in. Good. As much as he loved messing with his brother, most the people he was interested in where usually male and/or the weird mega sunshiny poet types....like hippies. No thanks. He preferred his prey , er friends, coherent.

Hermes ran a hand down the color of his blue, tailored suit, straightening it before impulsively tapping on the hard plastic of his phone as he made he fell into step beside her. She was realized and positively glowing when it came to her mood. Oh dandy, this should be easy then. Though another second told him otherwise. She wasn't the easy type. Well, he didn't mind a challenge. He grinned and turned so he was walking backwards in front of her. Excuse me, I swear I've seen you before, would you mind telling me your name? he asked casually, easily avoiding all obstacles though he marched on without the sight of what was in front of him.

[Deleted]

Now, one thing had to be made clear; just because Della was in a good mood didn’t mean she was in tunnel vision. Yes, she had her moments when she was so wrapped up in her own drama that she was completely unaware of her surroundings, but the thing was that there was no drama. That was why she was seriously thinking that today called for a celebration, remember? So that all added up to a generally more alert Della Miller, so when someone seemed to be walking somewhere by her, her gaze briefly glanced towards an unfamiliar looking guy, just barely old enough to be a teacher, probably, and if he was, he was the sort that girls were going to be drooling over and making general fools of themselves because of his presence. Her eyebrows flicked up for a second before she fixed her gaze forward. He didn’t seem like he was the kind of guy she’d need to pull a knife on and so unless he addressed her, there was probably no need for there to be…ahh, right on cue.

One eyebrow most certainly arched skeptically at his words. “I swear I’ve seen you before?” Really? Was he attempting to be obvious? Because she somehow doubted that he was new to this. While she was no expert on people, she was definitely getting a certain vibe from this guy with killer blue eyes that would probably very easily subdue someone who wasn’t wary. And Della? Was quite wary in these situations. Having encountered enough womanizers and one guy who perhaps broke her heart with a whole lot of her help, she had learned to recognize them when they presented themselves to her.

All the same, her curiosity was nagging at her ear. Skeptical expression still plain on her face, she answered, “It’s Della...and I’m fairly certain I haven’t seen you, so I’m going to have to guess you’re new around here.” In spite of herself, she couldn’t resist a little, ‘Welcome to Hell’ smirk there. Would he buy it? Who knew, who cared, so long as she got it out of her system, because let’s face it, in some aspects, this place was a hell on earth. It just so happened that she had been lucky for the past few months, and she was really hoping that she wasn’t finding the latest in a long line of handsome guys who enjoyed hitting on her to annoy her to ruin that streak.

[Hermes]

Clever girl. He could see it, in her stride, in the way she held herself, the way she spoke. She was no bimbo that he could win with a smile. He liked that. Sure, it was always nice to get an easy prize every now and again, but Hermes, lord of cunning and the such, loved himself a game or two. Someone like this he could go a few rounds with, he was sure. Wise beyond her years, with all the signs of a scarred heart. She wouldn't be easy to say the least, but even if he couldn't get her to go all the way, surely a few kisses might do her good, maybe even a dance. If he couldn't have her completely at least he might be just noble enough to bring a smile to that pretty face. These poor little mortals wasted so much of there time with stress and despair. Well is he a teacher or isn't he? Perhaps a little lesson on positive emotion was in his students further, or this girls future.

Though Della seemed to be in a rather good mood despite his impromptu conversation starter, he could feel her general tendency to be a worry wart. Ugh. He'd have to fix that if he could. In fact, she was not very like him at all, but she was clever, and it was her cleverness and her desire to write that had drawn him to her. He looked her over as she spoke, weighing her words and he gracefully made his way down the hall backwards. He raised his eyebrows and tilted his head slightly, giving her a oh really? look in response to her smirk more than anything. He chuckled then as he recalled her use of the word 'new' to describe him. Hermes wasn't new in any respect of the word, honestly, but she didn't need to know that right now did she? He grinned Well you could say th-oh excuse me he suddenly broke off as he sensed that he was quickly approaching a pair of people clearly not intent on moving out of his way like the others.

He turned just before running into them to find two students very...passionately...making out. Hermes looked socked and slightly horrified, but not for the reasons most assumed. He gracefully skirted around them and gave the boy a look of displeasure, Terrible technique, kid then he grinned you should take my class and with a wink he turned his attention back to Della. Come to think of it, why aren't you in my class Miss Miller? he said, nonchalantly cropping her name. He leaned on his cane, which had somehow appeared during the time they'd been speaking. He subtly blocked her path, grinning that charming grin.

[Deleted]

Della knew what it was like to be sized it. It didn’t really happen all that often before she left home, probably because her attitude was enough of a turn off, but it certainly began to once she got to this school. She really couldn’t tell you why even just being here made her less of a hag than she used to be. Maybe somewhere, deep down, she always knew that she was supposed to be here, at least for the present time. Unfortunately, her changed attitude, blended with Gwen’s fashion advice, apparently, had made guys more likely to look at her. It was what drove Morgan Owen to be a big fat liar, after all, something that still puzzled the hell out of Della. When the hell was it ever worth it to do something that stupid unless you were in a romantic comedy?

But this man? Well, as far as she could tell, he wasn’t about to pull out some outrageous lie like that (or at least he had better not if he had any plans of not dealing with overly angry redheads). Honestly, it was just the fact that Della had grown used to keeping an eye out for boys who needed to be reminded of where her eyes were located. Thankfully, this guy was subtle enough to not need such a reminder. Yes, she could see some amount of admiration, but nothing particularly special…he probably did this sort of thing a lot. At least, that was the vibe she was getting, and she was learning that her gut reactions weren’t all that bad.

Then there was a chuckle, but not like she had said something oh so witty (because she knew she had better lines in her arsenal than that, puh-lease). More like an “I know something you don’t” laugh…and she wasn’t going to lie, she was kind of fascinated. She would never say she was, however. Please. Like she’d ever live that down.

Another curiosity…wait, was he actually telling the guy who was playing tonsil hockey that his…technique was all wrong? Bewildered blink #1. As for the teaching thing, yeah, she had a feeling that this was the case, although really, just from the past two minutes, the thought of him teaching the class was more than a bit hard to imagine. Some drooling single girls…hell, she couldn’t help but wonder if he would actually encourage it, the way he was looking at her.

If she weren’t already kind of sucked into the conversation, the fact that he was blocking her path with a cane that…was not there before, but this was hardly the strangest thing at Tintagel…and okay, the blocked path was weird, but not necessarily worrisome. Eyebrow still arched, she answered, “Well how am I supposed to know why I’m not in your class if I don’t even know what you teach, Mister….?” Although she had a feeling this guy wasn’t going to give her his name right away. Just a hunch.

[Hermes]

Eye contact. Hermes was a careful man to keep it nearly constantly. Not just when he was trying to persuade a girl into participating in a bit more than a chat, but whenever he held an interaction with another being. It was a sign of his confidence, a trait that could be, in some was, hypnotic, he found. He wasn't just holding their gaze, he was watching them with a certain intensity, a dominance. He stared down his parter in conversation with such great conviction, that all too often, you begin to believe in things you otherwise wouldn't. The human brain is a funny thing thats easily tampered with, in the eyes of a greek god at least. The trick is tricking yourself first. If you look someone dead in the eye, sure that what your saying is true, then odds are, even the most skeptical will question their previous knowledge. So yeah, Hermes liked to look people in the eye when he spoke with them, Della being no exception.

His blue eyes were charged with a sort of electricity and he smiled at the beautiful redhead. He was pleased to see the same sort of lightening flashing in her eyes. Interest, fascination, he could have kept her path perfectly clear and he had it on good faith that she would still stay. Good then, the first step was always to get their attention. He had that at least, but my mere fascination, he'd need her to see a bit more than that in him if he ever wanted to taste those lips. He hadn't met a girl yet who had turned him down, well, in a matter of words, and he would so awfully hate for her to be the first. He just got here after all, and how much of a damper would that put on his day of he missed out. Just then his eyes flicked to a blond that strode past and tossed him a wink....well he might survive.

He quickly turned his attention back to Della, who was speaking now. He tapped lightly on his cane, which was no mere walking stick to say the least. Made of dark mahogany wood, it has two thin, finely carved snakes spiraling up it, with eyes that seemed eerily alive. It seemed to have been carefully coated with a gloss, that gave it a nice sheen under the lights of the hall. A cane nearly as magnificent as its holder, the thought narcissistically as he grinned and waited for Della to finish speaking. He found in momentarily intriguing that she wasn't the least bit concerned that he knew her name, ah well, he must just be that distracting. The poor dears mind was probably all jumbled. Then she asked what he taught and a grin spread across his face that was so impish that most would find it in their right mind to be concerned.

He shifted his weight so he could pick his cane up without worry of losing his balance, like that was really ever an issue for someone would could easily save themselves with flight. He sandwiched his cane between his hands and moved them forward and backward slightly, causing the cane to twirl between his palms as he looked upon her thoughtfully for a moment. He then sifted the cane in his one hand so as to use it to gently lift her chin. I think... he said finally, giving her a look of sultry amusement. That I should give you a lesson and see if you can guess the answers to either of those interesting questions of yours he smirked and kept his eyes carefully locked on hers, daring her to deny him.

[Deleted]

There was the fascination, of course, that was driving her to be essentially participating in a staring contest with this man who refused to give her his name, but in a way? She was studying him, perhaps as much as he was studying her. As was said before, Della had run into her fair share of womanizers, and within two minutes of her encounter with this guy, her Spidey sense, for lack of a better pop culture reference, was tingling. It would explain the whole bizarre “terrible technique” comment, for one thing…and now came her next piece of evidence, in the form of a leggy blonde passing them by. The fact that he went from such an intense gaze that was threatening to burn her eyes to that glance over at the blonde who had definitely winked at him was definitely evidence going towards her theory.

…it was sort of strange, wasn’t it, that she was learning the patterns of his type? Sure, you saw the character types all over pop culture, which she and her father were avid students of, but there was actually more of a subtlety to most of them in real life, and her experiences at this school had given her that knowledge. It was actually hilarious, the people who tried to hit on her…but this guy? Seemed different from them, somehow, like he was an old pro and knew how to not be entirely obvious.

At least, until he offered a “lesson”. But even then, to the naïve, that could probably go right over their heads, and while Della was naïve about a lot of things, this wasn’t one of them…

Well...this could actually be fun. She lowered her gaze “demurely”, like those killer eyes were just far too intense for this blushing maiden (if he really thought that, the joke was oh so very much on him). In a soft murmur that was intentionally meant to sound like the precise tone he was probably looking for, she said, “Hmm….well, you’re classier than most, I’ll give you that, but I still wasn’t born yesterday, sir.” Only then did she allow herself to look him in the eye again and give him a smug smile. She wasn’t going to be such an easy catch, and he would do very well to know that. “And I’d still like a name.”

[Hermes]

She seemed to be responding as a lot did. A blush, dropping the eyes, embarrassment at there feelings for such a devastatingly handsome man. Della, however, was one he had marked a while ago to not be one to fall into that group, he'd be surprised by her actions, that is, if he did see right through them. Thats what happens when you try to deceive the god of deception. So it was that game that they were playing, alright then fine. A games a game, after all, and Hermes loved himself a good game. How could he turn down such a pretty face and a sharp mind and a pretty face....did he mention that she's pretty? Well lets be honest here, as much as Hermes likes to converse people with brains, nothing beats the sight of a beautiful woman. Guys were okay, but its just so difficult to find a male even close to his own handsomeness and, anyway, most the time he only ever chase men to piss of Apollo. For now, he'd like to stick with females, particularly a Miss Della Miller.

A wide grin creeped up the sides of his face once she dropped her little facade and asked for his name a second time. He quickly switched out his cane for a hand on her chin and leaned closer in one, swift motion. Turn the moment quickly more sexual as he whispered and I'd like a kiss he murmured, blues eyes sparkling. He was well aware of the many boundaries he was pushing and only let the moment linger for a few moments before backing up and casually strolling a circle around her, brushing the right side of her soft locks behind her shoulder as he did so. But we can't always get what we want can we? he mused aloud, before pausing both verbally and physically just before he'd made a full arc around her oh wait he said thoughtfully yes we can. he grinned mischievously and locked his eyes back with hers. You've just got to know all the right questions to ask he spoke with a rather cryptic tone.

[Deleted]

Della hadn't been quite sure of what to expect when she pretty much proved herself a tease. Chances were it wouldn't be enough to chase the mysterious man away, and as of now, even if a part of her knew the chances of her getting annoyed by him were high, she didn't want him to go just yet. It was entirely possible that she'd be able to get some answers out of him before she grew weary of him. Now she just had to see what he did after knowing she wasn't going to be so easily won.

Before she knew what was happening, his hand was on her chin instead of that peculiar cane. Okay, she was going to be honest to herself: he had surprised her. People who had flirted with her didn't usually try to get this close before they reached the five minute mark of the conversation. This man was definitely an old pro...good thing for her she was aware of this. Otherwise he might actually get to her...

She narrowed her eyes when he finally pulled away and started to circle her (what was he, a vulture in another life?). She knew better than to think he was going to shrug it off, of course, and she was soon proven right, because they were right back where they had started, having a staring contest with some riddles mixed in.

"All the right questions, hmm? All right: what've you got to hide that I have yet to get a name out of you?" And then her smirk returned. "I'm certainly not going  to kiss a strange man who won't even give me his name. I doubt it'd happen anyway, but hey, why hurt your chances?" 

[Hermes]

He could hold back a good hardy laugh when she asked about what he had to hide. Nothing he answered in his head, though his eyes twinkled at her as if daring her to guess all the deeds she might deem worthy for him to hide. Surely he'd done a great deal that, by mere mortal morals, would be considered completely and utterly wrong. He is the god of thieves and the god of lairs, crime kind of coms his way naturally, though he does try to keep some kind of set of rights and wrongs. He's not a bad guy, but he definitely wouldn't be what most people defined as 'good' either. He likes to have some fun, so sue him. HAHA just kidding-you can't, because he's the god of lawyers as well. So good luck with that.

He state of jubilance was cut short by he last comment and replaced by an expression of questioning amusement. He quirked an eyebrow and shifted his weight as he watched her for a moment, and smirk appearing on his face. How very clever of you Miss Miller...I knew I liked you for some reason he said with a wink. Very clever indeed, cunning even. It would have been, of course, if he did see right through it. He sized her up, like he had been since their conversation began, only this time it was more like he was weighing her wit rather than her looks. He raised a hand to his lips in thought, considering what it was worth to play mind games with her.

After a moment he removed his fingers from his lips to point at her Are you suggesting we strike up some sort of deal? he said, with perhaps a bit dangerous sound dark undertones. He flashed her a grin, twisting words as he so often did. He paused another moment before choking up the grip on his cane in the one hand. He turned it side to side in the light and looked it over like he himself were unsure of its hidden identity. How badly he said just as the snakes on his cane flashed green for a moment. he locked eyes with her again do you want to know who I am? he grinned devilishly.

[Deleted]

Something about the fact that he had started laughing was, to be perfectly honest, unsettling. It seemed like he was finding her amusing, which was about as far from her intentions as you could get. Truthfully, she wasn't sure what exactly she wanted to accomplish here besides satisfying her curiosity, and she had, indeed, known it wouldn't be that easy, but that glint in his eye, that "I know something you don't" glint? Was the equivalent of nails on a chalkboard for her mood, and for the first time, a genuine frown crossed her lips. Yes, she got that he wanted a kiss, but if he wanted one so badly, she was certain there was easier prey. What was his angle? Why her? Unless he found a perverse pleasure in chasing the wily one, the one who fought back...that was certainly possible, and that meant they could be at this for quite some time.

...and now he had called her clever. "Thank you?" she responded, although the fact was she wasn't at all sure if this was a good thing or not, this guy "liking" her...she supposed that she could at least be glad that he wasn't underestimating her intelligence. It was just a matter of it seemed that said intelligence was just a game to him...he just seemed like the sort of man who would play games at every turn...

And apparently one of his favorites was circling around her. That was getting a touch bit irksome too, because while Della would never admit it, she was like any other person who didn't like the idea of being surrounded, even when it was just by one man (let alone the god that she didn't quite realize he was yet: she was clever, not psychic). That was the sort of thing that could kill you in battle, and even her very limited experience in training for battle had left her very wary of it. That was the kind of vulnerability that she just couldn't tolerate, and her vague irritation grew stronger...but not quite strong enough to make her just storm off like any sane woman probably would. Clearly, any sanity Della had left had long since gone.

In spite of herself, the challenge in his voice that was far too plain gave her the sort of goosebumps that she'd imagine you'd get when you're standing off the edge of a cliff. She couldn't remember the last time a mere conversation had left her feeling so adrenaline charged, senses so alert...that she indeed realized that the design on his cane? The snakes? They had so not always been green. Well you're just piling on the surprises, aren't you? she noticed, rather impressed with herself for keeping her expression fairly neutral in spite of the gears in her head turning at the unusual sight. Now she lifted her gaze back up, choosing her words just as carefully as her expression, which had now returned to the curious little smirk.

"Now see...I obviously want an answer....but I gather that there's going to be quite the catch, depending on how I answer, isn't there? I have the strangest feeling that striking up a deal with you could be pretty dangerous..."