Milane Continued.




     Phillip heaved a sigh and finished dragging the comforter full of random things into the nearly empty living room.  He looked around and felt a pang of disgust for this man.  Empty house, most of his nights spent in that little hole he called a bakery.  A cluttered kitchen with a double handful of dirty dishes begging for attention still scattered across the counter.  A nearly empty book shelf covered with dust. "Not an intellectual are we franky." he asked to the unconscious man who was still tipped backwards. "No. Definitely not."  He wiped his brow and looked down at his loot.  A Thick king sized comforter that had seen better days was loaded down. More tie wraps he scrounged from the tool box, A screw driver and some hardware for mounting, Some strips of cloth he'd ripped off of the curtains in the bedroom, and a cheap video camera he found in the closet that was a few years old, but since that crazy shit on the roof with the bird busted his camera, it would have to do.  "Who knew having fun would be so much work." He smiled in the musty dark of Franks apartment and began shifting things around.  He rolled the comforter out on the empty floor in front of the window. Even with the blinds down there was still plenty of room on the deep sill for placing the camera.  He took care in laying out everything. Checking and double checking the placement.  Closing his eyes to make sure that he could envision every possible movement and action. Where the bodies would be.  where he could put his hands.  He shivered when he thought about Stephanie quivering and wanton under his hands.  Oh she would be a beautiful blossom opening up just for him.  She would smell so sweet inside. He took a deep breath and began screwing in the metal loops at the corners of the window sills.  He hummed softly while he worked.

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     Milane... James.. Came to with a start. Something. A soft keening sound pulled him out of a deep, dark, dreamless sleep.  But this sad sound pulled him back to consciousness.  That dread of waking up in an unfamiliar place gripped him for a moment. He sat up and pulled a damp cloth from his brow before looking around again. "where.... Steph.." His words were a sigh in the blackness of the bedroom. Then that sound again, and he felt the bed shift. "Oh shit. Steph." It was her. Keening his name gently into the pillow that she was gripping. She was struggling in some fit of dream trouble. She called out his name again and clawed at her pillow.  Before he could stop himself he slid over close to her and stroked her cheek and took her small hand under his own. "Shhh.  I'm here and we're both okay." He said the words gently. His deep voice lulling her back to what he thought was sleep. Even still he couldn't pull away from her.  He inhaled softly, drawing in that smell. Bakery flour, cinnamon and coffee mixed with her own delicious smell. He sighed "God only knows how you'll face me in the morning light."

     "Well the morning can be unkind.  I think I'll start now." Her voice was melodic and slightly mischevious. He froze. His body going stock still. He still couldn't pull away, now he was too afraid to do anything. "So you get yourself into my bed, naked, and 'now' you're going to freeze up?"
     "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for any of this.  Oh god.  I feel like such a sleaze. How do I even... Oh shit." At the end of his sentence he just sounded defeated.  He slowly pulled his hand back away from her cheek but her own small fingers grabbed his and held them in place.  He felt her shift and all of a sudden, even with the faint city light filtering in the window he could see the shine in those eyes of her as she looked directly at him. Not at his better feathered half, at him. James. "Hello Stephanie." He started again. Trying for a soft soothing sound.  "So we meet again." He couldn't help but chuckle.
     "You know that I have a million questions that I'm just dying to ask." He could see her blink in the low light. The light reflecting in her eyes gone black, then glittering back into existance. He was entranced. He could barely breathe.  His skin touching hers. She was still looking at him so intensely. "I think awkward questions should be left to that awkward morning light however. " He could see her swallow nervously as she shifted again on the mattress against him. Her upper thigh was now pressed against the thin material of the pajama pants he was wearing.
     "You know I'll answer anything you wan't to know. I don't have any secrets now.  Well .. not really anymore.. " He chuckled into the waves of her black hair.  He tried to ignore the closeness of her. The scent. The way the heat from her body burned through the fabric over his leg. The fact that he could feel her trembling ever so slightly.  It fogged his mind. Made him feel as though he were dreaming.  As if he were floating in that nebulous place between beast and man again.
     "That's not true." She said simply. He blinked in confusion at her. Barely able to remember what he'd said last. "We all have secrets. More than one. Some more heavy than others mind you." She chuckled in the dark and reached her hand up and delicately tucked a dark corkscrew curl behind his ear. She felt him shiver at the touch of her fingers. "But like I said." She let her fingers drag ever so gently against the curve of his ear before slowly pulling away. "I'll leave those for the uneasy light of day."
     "More sleep then?" It sounded flimsy even to him. uneasy and nervous in the dark of this beautiful woman's bedroom. The silence rolled in to fill the gap for a long while before she spoke again. Neither of them willing to move away from the other.
     "I don't think I could sleep now if I wanted to.. James" She said his name. He felt his breath catch in his chest at the sound of his name on her lips. He opened his mouth to say something else, but just at that moment she slid her fingers into the cascade of his curls and pulled his face to hers.  She kissed him then with a burning passion that shook him to the core. He never could have imagined this. The feel of her mouth on his. The taste of her tongue and lips. He kissed her back deeply. A deep shiver rolling through him, but she was shaking too. It was too late then. The intoxication of her being so close to him. He pulled her closer and slid his lithe form over her more curvaceous body. His big warm hands slid over the thin material of her tank top and he revealed in the sensations. She moaned against his mouth and he could barely keep himself sane. He smoothed his thumb over the shape of her nipples under the thin shirt and felt himself gasp against her mouth. "More." she said softly, and he could only oblige.  His hand slipped under the material of her shirt and lifted it over her head leaving her wearing only a pair of soft black panties.  The thought of it sent another set of shivers rocketing through his body.
     "I have dreamed about this.." but she cut his words off with another burning kiss and pushed him back on the bed so that she was above him now. She made a soft shhsing sound before she stradled his hips.  In the weak light filtering in the window he could make out the beautiful lines of her full figured body. Breasts swaying slightly as she arched her back. A wild mane of hair falling down her back and over her shoulders.
     "We'll make new dreams." The words were soft, almost shy, but as she spoke them she rocked her hips against his and he was lost again to sensation and heat.  A place where words were not allowed to live. He lifted his hips, erection throbbing under the heat and pressure of her hips.  She reached down and tugged at the string on his pajama bottoms and made a soft wanton sound. He shifted lifting again and hooked his thumbs under the elastic waistband and pulled them down. As she moved back against him, his skin seemed electrified. The ecstatic sensation of only the thin stretch of cotton between their bodies made him clumsy with desire.  She let out a soft giggle and moved one more time to slide out of her panties. "Moment of truth Mr. Crow. Make it count." It was a playful taunt, but as their bodies met one final time he grabbed her hips and pulled her down against him hard. He couldn't wait. He couldn't stand the space and cold air between them. He must be with her. Must have her..Must.... And then the overwhelming sensations gripped him. She was so warm. So wet. She gasped loudly and fell forward, hands on his chest to keep her balance.  He lifted his hips again and she cried out, but pleasure tinged the sound. Her trembling needing form slowly gaining it's faculties again. "Oh god" she panted but began to grind her hips down against him.
     "You're a spectre. A succubus." He chuckled trying to lighten the intensity that was sure to burn them both to a cinder. "You're going to take my soul woman." The last word he growled out, falling prey to the heavy desire driving them both.  The only response she gave was to grind down harder with a quick swivel of her hips that made him lose all capabilities of speech. His hands danced across her body, pulling her down harder against him until they both were lost to the rythym and motion. He let her take control, too scared that his need and want of her would make him consume her whole. That there wouldn't be anything left of this when the invasive sun came to crawl across the wood floors and touch them in the morning. They laced their hands together against the pillows and both fought off the coming morning with passion and skin to skin contact.  He felt her clench and cry out and she couldn't contain herself anymore and she collapsed on top of him.  "Don't ever do that again." She sobbed softly against his chest, still panting softly from her orgasm.
     "I'm sorry. I thought you wanted... You kissed..." She put her fingers against his lips to keep him from talking until she could get her breath back.
     "No you idiot. Don't ever throw yourself off the side of a building again." She laughed lamely in inky dawn light. "Ever do it again and I'll kill you." She buried her face in his hair.  It was all still so surreal. How did he get here?  What was happening.
     "I promise" was all that he could manage. She mumbled something into his hair. He waited a long moment before asking her what she said, but all that came out from his curls were muffled sounds of sleep. He closed his eyes and held her close still laying on top of him and drifted off behind her, holding her close.

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     Raquel hovered around the back door of the bakery in the brick alley that led back to the dumpsters.  Her hands were clenched around her cell phone as she paced back and forth "Damnit." She hit end and yelled at a group of people as they passed the mouth of the alley. "What the fuck are you eyeballin." She rolled her eyes and hit redial. "Goddamnit steph. Pick up."  She shook the phone as if some sort of electronic malfunction was keeping her call from going through and not the fact that it was seven in the morning and any decent soul would still be asleep.  When there was still no answer she beat on the back door of the bakery again, but she knew noone was in there. Frank was like clockwork. Five A.M. every morning that big mother fucker was in there making bagels and brewing coffee as if his life depended on it. Noone had seen him for a day and a half and she was too scared to go to his apartment. She flipped through her key ring again and again as if she really hadn't given Phillip the key to Franks place. She'd never given it back to frank after he'd let her flop at his place a few years back when her and her boyfriend had split up. She bowed her head and fought back the fear as she dialed her phone again. "You stupid cunt. Pick up!"

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     Steph came around to the faint sounds of bells. Bells? No. Her ring tone. She blinked sleepily in the pale morning light as she gathered her wits. She grinned a sleepy cheshire smile at the man next to her in the bed. Oh yeah. That definitely wasn't a dream. The sound of her phone brought her back to reality as she slipped into her tank and panties and slunk her way into the living room and picked up her now silent phone.  She looked through the missed calls. Six missed calls from Raquel and one 800 number that probably wanted money she didn't have. She rolled her eyes and started to toss the phone. Let Raquel take out her teen angst on someone that could stomache it.  Just as she reached out to drop her phone on the counter, it rang again. She flipped it open. "You stupid cunt. Pick up!" Came Raquels worried voice on the other end.
     "Quell?" Steph said into the phone a little more than surprised. "What in the hell." There was a gush of words and sounds that Stephanie couldn't even begin to decipher. "Slow the fuck down. Are you okay? Are you hurt?"
     "That's what I'm trying to tell you Steph.  I'm fine, but I'm not sure Frank is.  He's been missing man. Missing for like a day and a half.  noone saw him last night at the shop and ... "
     "I closed with him last night.  We cut out early, but he was fine." Steph sighed and wandered over to the coffee maker pulling a mug down. Looked at it for a moment then pulled down a second one and couldn't help but grin.
     "Yeah Okay but he's not here." Raquel sounded really shaken. "I mean like, the bakery is empty. Noone is at the upper crust." She heaved a sigh sounding releaved to get it out.  Steph arranged the mismatched mugs on the counter and pulled the coffee pot from it's resting spot on the burner.
     "So he called out for a day. Ease up. You know how hard he works.  " Steph sighed. "Is this about the falling out you two had? Cause if you ask him nicely, you know he'll give you his job back right? He's a big push over and you know how to blink those big pretty eyes and get him to go all 'big sweet goof' on ya." Steph laughed into the receiver but there cold silence on the other end had her worried now. "What is it that you're not telling me Quell." She waited.
     "That's the thing man." There was a rustling sound on the other end, and Stephanie knew Raquel was digging a smoke out of that crazy oversized handbag that she carts around. "Just don't be mad okay?" Stephanie sighed and sat down on the barstool next to the counter.
      "Quell." was all stephanie had to say before the girl on the other end of the phone began to mumble and try to figure out exactly how to word her story.
     "Well I was real pissed at Frank for saying he thought I was stealing.  I mean I work my ass off you know. There he goes just yelling at me and .. Well I lost it right, but I was real mad Okay." Steph could almost see Raquel in her mind. Pacing back and forth. Hair falling across her eyes as it came untucked from behind her ears.  Big Doe eyes going all hard as she talked about something that made her angry. "So Phillip and I were out having a drink and I was talking about it you know. Just letting off some steam. So he asks if I want to give him a scare. To get even right? For being such a jerk." She was talking faster now.  Guilt speeding up the parts that she didn't want to admit to. Trying to gloss over the parts where it might have been her fault.
     "Oh Raquel. What the hell did you do." Steph sagged on the barstool. She tried to imagine what might come next but for the life of her couldn't imagine.
     "Well Phillip told me we ought to give him a scare.  Break into his place and toss some stuff around to make it look like someone rolled his joint you know? show him what it would feel like to really have someone steal your stuff." She took a deep breath.
     "That's a complete asshole move Quell and you fucking know it." Stephanie could feel her face getting red as she gripped the phone listening to this little spoiled brat prattle into the phone. "What happened."
     "Well that's just it right? I told Phillip I didn't wanna do that. I mean that's straight up B&E you know and I don't wanna get thrown in lock up for a week man." She could hear Raquel take a sloppy nervous drag off of her cigarette. "So Phillip tells me to give him my key to Franks place and he'd sneak in and shake it up you know." She let out a bubble of nervous laughter "I gave it to him Steph. I mean like an idiot I gave it to him."
     Stephanie let out a puff of air. Was this all? She thought for sure someone would be hurt. Surely someone punched Phillips lights out for a stupid prank and lost his job or someone got hurt and was on their way to the hospital, this girl was going on like the world had ended. "Look Quell, Frank probably just had a late night out like the rest of us and slept in. He's allowed to. He's a big boy and he can take care of himself." Even as she said it, she knew it wasn't quite right. For the years she'd known Frank he'd never skipped out on opening the Upper Crust before dawn. "I'll swing by later and check on him okay?"
     "Steph, I think something's mad wrong okay." Raquel sounded more upset and nervous than Steph had ever heard her before. "Just call me alright. I'm too ashamed to go round to Franks, and I'm too scared." There was a quick sound of a sigh then the phone line went dead.
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     Phillip took a step back and eyed his handy work. It wasn't what he imagined his first time with Stephanie would be like but it would have to do. He wanted something more romantic. A nicer place, but Frank's place was a bit of a dump.  He leaned down and dusted his hands off on his pants and turned to look at the man whom he had left layed back still tied on the wheel chair.  A soft rumbling sound let Phillip know that Frank was starting to come to. He quietly wandered over to where the big man lay bound to the seat and watched him for a moment. The man's face was almost serene despite the ludicrous state.  One of the man's big legs was a bluddy pulp and had started clotting over where he'd been passed out for the last few hours and the knife was still jutting out from his shoulder.  "Upsy Daisy." Phillip said playfully as he hefted the big man's wheel chair.  It came to a sitting position with a hard jolt and Frank gave out a sharp cry of pain. He'd gone awfully pale and Phillip looked down at the tarp which was now covered in clotting jelly like blood. "Oh Franky baby. It doesn't look too good for you.  You've lost a bit too much blood I'm afraid."  He gave Frank a slap on the back of his shoulder as if they were cold buddies just shooting the breeze and Frank gave out another sharp cry. "I think it's time we called your lady love.  I think you and I are both Ready. "
     Phillip strolled over and picked up the corded phone and drug it over near where Frank was seated. He held out the receiver and waited a moment as if Frank would reach out and take it. After a long moment Phillip giggled and looked down to see Franks zip tied wrists bloody against the unforgiving plastic restraints. "Don't worry. I'll dial for you."  Phillip pressed the keys slowly. Intentionally letting the tones from each key ring out to echo in the apartment. "When she picks up. Just sound sad and tell her you need to see her.  Hell. Call for help. I don't care what you say, but she'll come. She won't be able to leave you all pathetic and sad." Phillip made an overly dramatic sad drama face at Frank as he hit the last button.
     The sound of the ringing seemed too loud in the silence of the room until Stephanie's voice slithered through the static. "Frank? Thank god, I was just getting ready to call you dove." The worry in her voice made Phillip pull a face but it broke Frank's heart.
     "Steph Don't come. Run, get out of town, he's got..." And Phillip slammed the phone down into the receiver and giggled again. It was a sharp sound. A cutting sick sound. It bubbled up from somewhere deep and forbidden in the throat of this madman.
     "You think that will work?" He wrinkled his face and looked as if he wanted to spit. "Ohhhhh Stephanie......Save yourself. .... I'm a Martyr." He made an overdramatic 'oh woe is me' face and dropped the phone on the floor and put the back of his palm against his forhead.  "Hells bells Frank. I'm banking on the fact that she runs out of her apartment so fast that she doesn't even call the fucking cops." He laughed and followed the cord to the wall and yanked it out. "You just made sure she'll show up. She wont even know what hit her." He laughed at his own joke and Frank blacked out again.

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Thanks to Eryn

Thanks to Eryn, I have this image stuck in my head.  I've drawn her half a dozen times, but this one I did on photo shop just goofin but it turned out pretty well. Might do some more of her in different poses.  Dunno yet.  Also, My apologies... To who? Noone reads this thing, but apologies anyway for not finishing the Milane Story, which I think I'm going to work on very very soon. I already know how I want it to end.

Phillip greeted Frank as if they were old friends. They were after all, getting ready to be very well acquainted   Frank looked shocked to see him. Frightened even.  His eyes fluttered with the sheer ecstasy of seeing that fear.  Before he lost his advantage he brought the syringe that he'd been concealing up and pushed Franky Boy through the doors.  A quick jab and the man was down.
Goddamn was this man heavy. Phillip was sweating getting him down a long corridor and into Franks shitty one room studio apartment. He hefted the man through one more doorway and then left him in a pile on the floor. Wiping the sweat off of his brow he stood over the man and gave him a hard rib cracking punt to the chest.  "Oh Lover boy. It's going to be a beautiful night."  He lifted his gaze double checking all of the things he'd set up earlier.  "Early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise." His words were crisp. Calm. Even if he was talking to a doped up unconscious man.
He straightened the plastic tarp on the floor and the wheelchair in the center, Tie wraps waiting in an organized line nearby. He took a deep breath and rolled Frank over before awkwardly slinking him into the chair and securing him into place.  He even doubled up on his wrists and ankles, God knows how strong this Ox might be when he was awake. He snaked his way around the apartment pulling an array of beautiful shiny things from their homes. A knife from the kitchen. A long rasp from a tool box in the corner. A wire brush from the closet near the bathroom. A heavy wrench from under the sink.
The implements were arranged on a card table. Even in the dim light of the apartment you could make out their identifiable shapes.  Phillip walked by the table over and over again. Each passing he delicately ran his index fingers over the curves and lines of each piece, as if memorizing their contours. A slow euphoric smile spread over his face. Pupils expanded, eyes nearly all black, in sudden shock contrast to his pale blond hair.   He made another circle around the table then ended up next to Frank. He pushed his glasses up on his face and leaned over the big dark man.
"Wakey wakey big Franky" During his last pass to the table, he picked up the kitchen knife, which he now plunged into Frank's shoulder. It slipped in. No resistance. Phillip quivered with excitement. "I never dreamed" he said softly, but the sound was drowned out by Frank's muffled screams against his gag. He twisted the handle just a touch and a new series of screams erupted against the restraint in Frank's mouth. "Don't worry love." He patted the top of Frank's head, but left the knife plunged in the mans shoulder "We'll call your girlfriend, but we're going to have a little fun first." and with that, He reached over and plucked the wire brush from the table.


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Steph blinked in the half light of her darkened bedroom. She lay there a moment slightly disoriented, trying to put her finger on what it was that woke her. She tilted her head, eyes still closed, pale face lost in a sea of black waves over her pillow as she listened intently. City sounds. Far off traffic. Air brakes gushing a few blocks over as a late night bus picked up and dropped off on Main street. She nearly faded back out, when a soft keening sound made her open her eyes and sit straight up in the bed.  At first a panic settled over her. Someone was in here. In her home. In 'her' room.  Her hands fumbled quick and sloppy against her night stand lamp.  The light flicked on and her eyes flitted all over the room before landing on her broken bird.
"Milane." The word sounded like a summoning. A beckoning. A prayer.  The bird was flinching and twisting in his little makeshift nest. "No!" She thought he was dying. Tears were already spilling out of her eyes as she climbed across the bed, fingertips extended out to sooth the poor beast.  The low keening sound was like nothing she'd ever heard. A whale song of misery, with the rough, saw edge sound of her raven.  "Please.. no..." It was an entreat. Nothing short of begging the nebulous, faceless gods to leave this poor beast to her care. The sound began to change. No longer a resonating whale song, it became louder, more present, more.. human.  She blinked and reached out to touch his feathers. He was trembling, and when her fingers finally made contact she realized he was burning up, almost scalding to touch "What in the hell..." She climbed all the way over "Are you growing?" The words were barely out of her mouth before the sound became a full on human wail and Milane began to transform. while the body of the bird stretched and twisted, his beak sunk in and flattened out. The feathers seemed to retract, or skin seemed to grow over them.  Steph pulled her hands back and back pedaled across the bed.  Her eyes were wide with fear and awe, her back pressed tightly up against the headboard frozen there watching the scene unfold before her.
The shapeless changing thing kept morphing in front of her.  She heard audible pops and crackles as the wings fattened and then stretched. Bones twisting, and mending as the transformation continued. She had no idea about time. This could have been going on for hours, or seconds. She was lost to the beautiful horror of what was happening.  To stunned to even reach for the bat that she kept at her bed side.  Soon the sound went completely still. A pin drop would have sounded like an anvil crash in that room.  She finally pulled herself together enough  to move.
The movement on the bed started the bird-man, and his head snapped up, dark eyes focusing on her intently. Still wild from pain and disorientation. He saw her and his face immediately softened. "Stephanie." He said. His voice was full of heavy emotion. He gifted her with a sweet half cocked smile and said "I'm not really a bird. I'm a human ... with a condition" He had the good grace to look apologetic... then passed out face down on the bed."
Her hands were balled up against the top of her bare thighs. Breath still coming in gasps of fear. Hair wild, eyes wilder. As soon as he spoke and passed out, her whole physiology seemed to pause. The tension let out of her and she sagged. "Well isn't that fucking something."
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The room was dark when it seemed to fall into place for him. When he seemed to be able to grip that magical thing. That switch that would allow him to shift.  He had to. He couldn't expect Steph to forgive him, or to understand. He felt his body seize and twitch. He understood. He was dying. He was a sentimental fool, sure.  He followed Steph around for damn near a year in the hopes that this bizarre relationship might actually turn into something... but he wasn't so sentimental that he'd lay down and die just to avoid embarrassment.  Just do it.  Even in his hazed avian thoughts, he knew he had to pull himself together. To pull the right string and make it happen. He'd just have to hope that Steph would forgive him in the end.
He tensed his way through another shudder. He could feel his body starting to shut down. His bird form seemed so frail. He blocked it out. Focused on that thin string in his mind. The one seemingly made out of light and sound. The familiar sensations of being a human. He plucked it. Felt it resonate pleasantly through his entire body. Then he grabbed it full force and pulled. It hurt worse this time than ever before. It was never pleasant mind you, but the intensity of this ripped a primal scream down from the base of his soul.  He could feel the cracks and tears in his body being stitched back together. Could feel his body grow and stretch and twist as it attempted to find his other form. He faltered for a moment and felt it skip and revert, before tripping back again and pushing forward to his human self.
When it was over he was left clutching the bed sheets in his hands, panting short, harsh breaths as he willed himself to make eye contact with the woman who had saved him. The woman he'd silently been in love with for years.  The one who, he was now naked, and on her bed with.  He looked up finally. The sight of her made his heart want to stop all over again. She sat back against the headboard. Black tank top against her pale skin, made her almost seem to glow. Wild hair cascading down over her shoulders in a wicked torrent. He pretended not to notice that the only other clothing she had on was a pair of black cotton briefs. Her eyes, though terrified, were more blue than he'd ever seen them before. He gave her a dopey smile and said the only think he could muster, and then blackness took him again.

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The blackness was kind. It was forgiving and comforting. Somehow he knew that on the other side of that darkness, nightmares were waiting to claim him. He knew that no good would come of this.  A voice bid him to stay there. To keep safe in the dark and the silence, but a searing pain cut through that black void and pulled him foolishly back to the surface. He came to screaming. Burning up and cold at the same time. Pain he had never known before coursed it's way through his shoulder and down his side, and over to his chest.  His eyes couldn't seem to focus on anything.  He tried to move. To escape the pain, but he was held in place.  The pain finally  muted down to a barely standable throb, and he finally was able to hone his vision in. It was Phillip.  That little son of a bitch.  It came back to him now. Being pushed through the door. Jabbed in the neck.  How long had the bastard been waiting in his home. He looked around quickly for anything that could help. A way out. Help. He refused to look at that face. That pale golden haired demon that was standing over him looking pleased as punch.
Phillip twisted the handle of the knife that was still sticking out of his shoulder.  A new wave of agony drenched him, and he rioted against the restraints, rolling faintly, he looked down and saw wheels. A fucking wheelchair.  He must have planned this for god knows how long.  The pain erupted a new panic, a new need to escape.  He didn't know how long he could endure this. His eyes focused on the phone for a moment too long because he could hear the cherub voice of his attacker chime in "Don't worry love, we'll call your girlfriend, but we're going to have a little fun first." Frank Squeezed his eyes shut and heard a clink and a scrape as Phillip picked up something off of the table.
A new blaze of pain erupted through his body. Not the sharp distinct plunge of a knife, but a raw nasty unbearable pain to his left leg. He shook and rattled against the chair and looked down at the boy, who was vigorously scrubbing against his shin from knee to ankle with a heavy wire brush. The entire front of his leg was a bloody pulp. Phillip looked up at Frank with sweet emotion dancing in his eyes and a blood spray decorating his cheeks like freckles.  Eyes almost innocent and filled with glee.  "You're my first." he whispered softly. "And while I want to take my time with you. Make this right. I do have something to confess."  He scrubbed again, harder this time. Frank could feel the wires scraping against the bone, and he had to fight to keep conscious. He coughed and bit against the gag in his mouth, trying not to vomit. He could still hear Phillip talking. "This isn't going to be as romantic as it will be with Stephanie." The young man heaved a sigh of regret.  "I want to keep you alive you understand. I need you to see me take her apart.  Unwrap her like a gift. " He giggled then, and ran a finger over the raw nerves of the open wound, touching Frank's bare shin bone.  " I think you'll enjoy it more than you could imagine." Frank screamed against his gag again. But it was filled with rage this time. He shook and rattled his chair again with such force that it fell backwards. The wind was knocked out of him and new blossoms of pain erupted from his wounds.  Phillip stood up and climbed over him, indelicately pressing against his leg and shoulder. "You don't think I see you watching her the same way I do. Lust in those oafish eyes.  You want her the same way I do, and I'm going to make you watch." Another Giggle, and then Frank could see the quick fast silhouette of a monkey wrench before a sudden wave of unconsciousness took him again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

His heart was singing. There was music in his blood. In all of the blood. Magick there. Thick and crimson and full of his darkest desires.  The big man had put up quite a fuss after the nice scrubbing. He didn't know that the skin would be so easy to scrub away. He flicked a few thick pulpy pieces from his sleeve onto the tarp underfoot. Mr. Frank had put up quite a fight even in the chair, and had tossed himself backward.  Oh how he pretended that he didn't want to see Stephanie laid out before them both. He pretended that he didn't want to see her pulled apart and opened in every way and put back together. Maybe it was jealousy that it wouldn't be him.  Who knows.  The psyche is a strange place.  He'd show him exactly what he wanted. What they both wanted.  They just didn't know that they did yet.
He licked his lips as he thought about it. He stood over Frank, a foot planted on either side of his shoulders. Heavy wrench still in his hands from knocking the big guy out. "We're going to need to prep a little more I think." He nodded to himself as if Frank were still conscious. As if they were cohorts for the moment. "I'm sure you've got everything I need sir." He lifted his fingers to his brow and tipped his imaginary at his victims bruised, nearly crushed face. "You go ahead and rest up, I'll need you in a few."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Steph watched as Milane, her bird man, passed out face first with that ridiculous grin on his face.  She blinked a few more times before very quietly slipping from the bed. She tip toed around to the side and knelt, looking at his face. She knew this man. She ever so delicately reached up to push a handful of dark curls away from his features. "James." She had to catch her breath. "What in the living hell is... You're my goddamned bird?!"  Even in her outrage she kept her voice to a low whisper.  "I ought to throw you out of my own damned window." though her anger was real, her words lacked any conviction.  "I bet that was your twenty in the jar to you bastard." The last words were more laughter than whisper, and she realized that she was still stroking his cheek where she had pushed his curls back, she quickly withdrew her hand.  "Well I can't leave you like this I guess."  She sighed and stood up, realizing for the first time that he was stark naked.  She hurriedly dug out a pair of her super baggy PJ bottoms and as gracefully as one can, shimmied them onto the unconscious man.
"Whatever happened to just asking a lady out for coffee." she muttered as she wrestled him into a more comfortable and decent position on the bed. He still seemed to be suffering from a fever so she went to get some things from her medicine cabinet to see if she could help, when she returned Fat Spanky was waddling around on the blankets and curling up near James' knees. "Traitor." she said accusingly to the cat, who looked completely offended, and licked his paw in rebuke before laying his head down. She stole the moment to truly look at the man. He was beautiful really. Dark full corkscrew curls that women would kill for. Defined Jaw line, deep set dark eyes. She'd pulled the blankets up over his chest, but her eyes were drawn over and over again to the graceful lines  of his shoulders and collar bone.
"Well I suppose if I have to be vexed by some paranormal bird man monster, that he ought to be pretty." she laughed and gently laid the cool wet cloth over his brow. The man fidgeted and then in his sleep gave that same groggy half smile, that she knew could probably get him out of any argument.  She sighed softly and walked around the bed and clicked off the lamp and slipped under the covers.  She propped herself up on her elbow, watching him intently. Certain that sleep would never find her after what she saw. After knowing that there was a strange man in her bed. After... after all of this..  But sleep came drifting in unbidden, and claimed her for it's own.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

More feathered fun

Milane Continued.



Stephanie made her way to the apartment as fast, but as gently as possible.  The injured bird cradled in her sweater. Even though she could see the stone steps to her apartment, it felt as if they were miles away. The city had never felt as dangerous and as empty and hopeless to her as it did right this moment.  After what seemed like forever she pushed her way into the apartment building. She heaved a sigh and steadied herself up a flight of stairs and into the elevator, pushing buttons with her elbows trying not to unsettle the bird. Finally, Avalon! She could see the door to her apartment.  They were safe.
As she clicked the door closed behind her, even Spanky was silent while he watched her.  She set the camera down on the table with a unconcerned clatter and tiptoed her way down the hallway to the bedroom.  "Jesus. Shit. What am I going to do. I'm not a fucking vet." She squeezed her eyes shut, cutting off the tears that were spilling over at the corner of her eyes.
       "I'm going to try to help you." she whispered.  The big bird gave a muffled caw. He was a shadow of the magnificent beast she usually saw.  Wing at an odd angle. Feathers were a smeary mess from the dirty side walk and from the plummet over the side of the building.  Very slowly and with deft, gentle hands she began to look him over for injuries.One broken wing and one messed up leg. A few small cuts and missing feathers.  Stephanie took a deep breath and walked to the bathroom to get her first aid kit.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What the fuck was that." Was all that Phillip could think. Over and over again.  Phrase burning red hot in his mind.  He held a hand up to his cheek where that goddamned bird had slashed it with his talons.  He pulled the hand down and saw the crimson streak across his palm. He only wished he had stopped that stupid animal into pulp. His mind was a mess. A blaze of rage and dark anger as he ran down the stairs in the building.  He just had to get down there and find his camera before someone else did. His thoughts led back to Stephanie. Some how, she did this.  That bitch was going to get it. Sent her little attack bird after him will she... He'd fucking show her who she was messing with.
He slung open the door to the building and stomped his way out onto the city street. Oblivious to the cold now, he kept his head down looking for the rumpled mess of his camera, but it was nowhere to be seen.  His boots crunched on some thin broken glass, but the camera was nowhere to be found.  He balled up his fist and punched the side of a derelict old pay phone.
That's it. If she wants to play hard to get. He'd make her come to him. He'd find someway to make her
crawl on her knees and beg for him. He would... A light went off in his mind. All those blazed erratic thoughts became razor sharp and clear. He knew exactly what to do. Exactly how to bring her to her knees.  "I'll be seeing you in just a bit love."  Phillip hefted his knapsack over his shoulder again and turned to march back up to main street.
 "Oh Franky... It's gonna be a good night." he said to himself as he raised his hand to hail a cab.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Frank was finishing up for the night. He couldn't quite get the whole ordeal with Raquel out of his mind.
He went over and over in his head how he could have said the right thing. Changed the outcome.  Frank had a bad habit about that. He was a bear of a man, but what a softie he was on the inside.
Lindsay was wiping down the tables in the cafe area while he put the racks away, and wiped down the counters in the back. "Alright get ya ass outta here and study for those exams you got coming up." He called through the double doors. He heard Lindsay laugh softly as she slipped into her coat.
"You're a doll Frank." She stood on her tiptoes and hugged him before jetting out the back door.
"You guys sure do know how to make a sucker outta me." He called as she closed the back door behind her. He watched through the back glass, making sure she got into her car and out onto the street before going back to finish up. He was having trouble fighting off a case of the willies all day. Cold chills, the heebie jeebies, whatever you want to call them. Frank had them full force.  He kept checking over his shoulder.  Looking twice in each room. Double checked the tills, even switched on the News Radio show he usually hated.  Nothing.  Still he couldn't seem to shake it.  He heaved a sigh and flicked the neon signs in the window off before cutting through the double doors to the back again. He reminded himself to call in and check on Steph as soon as he got home.  Maybe this case of the heebs was her doing. He smiled to himself at the thought of calling her up and blaming the woman for his strange mood. He flipped on the security lights in the back before locking the door and making his way out.
Frank clambered into his old hatchback clunker and slammed the door.  Windows only worked on one
side, and her paint had seen better days, but she hadn't let him down yet. "Home again, Lydia" he said and gave the dashboard a pat.  She coughed to life and slid out of the parking lot behind the bakery.
He pulled into the small parking deck of his apartment and unwedged his formidable frame out of the car.  "Until morning." He chucked and gave the door a loving slam before turning to head out. Suddenly thick and heavy, that unsettling sensation came over him again. That hot-cold flush on his skin was undeniably present.  He shook all over and reached in his pocket for his keys and making a hurried rush for the front of the apartment building. He was opening both security doors when a low familiar voice greeted him.  Soft, and almost gentle.
"Evening Frankie boy." Phillip said.  The young man was right behind him.  How could he have gotten so close and been so quiet. Frank barely had time to jump, and no time to speak before Phillip pushed him the rest of the way through the doors.  Frank felt a Sharp burning pain in the side of his neck. He heard a wicked creepy laugh coming from Phillip and then the whole world went black.

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Stephanie had fixed Milane up as best she could. His wing was set right and wrapped in some gauze to
hold it in place.  She had tried to stint the messed up leg but the bird had fought it, pulling it away weakly with his beak.  After that she'd treated all the scrapes and pulled a piece of glass from the skin of his chest.
Now he was cuddled up in the blankets on the middle of her bed, body rocked with shivers every minute or so. Pain dulling his usually vivid eyes. She watched from across the room. Back pressed against the door frame, eyes straining in the dark to make out his lines. Why did it bother her so badly. She was an animal lover sure. The bird and she had been 'friends' for all intents and purposes.. but the melancholy she felt at his injury... the absolute heartbreak, seemed far too intense.
Some creeping cousin to deja-vu began to slink it's way up the base of her spine and she shook her head. She wiped her hands across the thigh of her jeans, and pushed away from the door jam. "sleep easy." She made her way back down the hall, eyes moving to the broken lump of a camera on the counter, which Spanky was readily investigating his own self.  That uneasy sensation from her spine turned into a cold brick as she looked at the thing. The lens was broken, but it was huge. Either someone was taking some
epic cityscape photos, or they were one hell of a stalker.  She turned it over in her hands, trying to see if she could salvage anything. Someone would be looking for this certainly. After a few moments and no success at getting the screen to come on, or to pop the mangled lens from the front, she found the tiny compartment where the Memory card was.  She gave a yelp of joy and patted Spanky's head, who of course
was helping.  "It's sad that this makes me feel all Nancy Drewish." She dropped the Memory stick on the desk next to the computer. "We'll have to find out if we have an adapter for this card."
Steph made her way across the kitchen, eyes barely able to keep open after her bizarre night. She reached for a mug and the coffee cairn simultaneously and paused. "No. Sleep. Give in."  Then she looked over at the cat and did her best zombie impression. She heaved a sigh and pulled the curtains closed and switched the television off before going down the hall again. She'd almost forgotten about Milane in his linen
nest on the bed.  Her hand flicked the light switch, which got her a soft guffaw from a pile of silky black feathers on the bed and she instantly slapped the switch off again. "Sorry sweetheart." she kicked her shoes off and pulled her sweater over her head and tossed it in a pile on the floor. "I wasn't thinking." She wrinkled her nose as she tried to balance her sleepy brain with where she might move the bird, in the end she just
gently pulled the birds makeshift sick bed as far to one side as possible, where she might not kick him or roll over on him in the night.
She half danced, half fell out of her jeans and onto the bed. "Don't go getting the wrong impression." She winked at Milane as if he might be able to understand her. "I don't normally let just any ruffians into my bed." She climbed under her blankets and tossed her dark hair over her pillow. Somewhere in the half light of the room there was a dark bird sound, that echoed faintly of laughter, and then she found
sweet oblivious sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After the fall, there was nothing but pain. Each breath was agony. He wasn't sure for a bright agonizing moment, who he was, or where he was, or what had happened. Then it all came flooding back. Attacking the man on the roof.  How it went wrong.  He'd rebuke himself for his wonderful escape plan, if he could pull any two coherent thoughts together.
He tried to pull himself together. Both his wing and his leg seemed to be twisted around the wrong way. Wings! He was still feathered at least. Not naked in the middle of the street, that's something. Wouldn't Stephanie laught to look out of her window and see a broken dying naked man near her stoop.  He heaved a breath that caught in his throat. Stephanie. His heart panicked. Where was she. He tried to move his head to peer in the direction of her apartment window, but couldn't manage more than to drop his head against the cold concrete. He willed himself as hard as he could to slip back to his other skin. Sometimes the change could heal him up. Mend broken bones, put himself right. The harder he tried, the farther away it seemed to be. The cold wind and the grit of the concrete. The dark city sky. They were all he could feel. That and the pain of his injuries. He tried again and the pain blacked out the world.
The sound of glass being ground underfoot brought Milane back to the waking world of pain and cold. Come to finish the job you bastard. He just wanted it over now. He wanted Stephanie safe, but what could he do here? A broken tiny feathered thing. Some protector he was. He cawed and tried to stand but fell over once more. Then he could see her. A shadow at first, but he could hear her. Soft voice laced with fear and sadness.  Then she leaned over him and he could see those bright blues full of tears. She was safe. She was here! Then the darkness took him again.  All that followed were brief peeks of the waking world between fade outs. He was being carried. Warmth. Soft hands. blackness.
Sounds of doors.  Flashes of pain. Stephanie's eyes. Strange room. His broken wing feeling like it was being ripped off. Oblivion.  After some nebulous amount of time a flash of light brought him around once more. He cawed in automatic protest and heard Stephanie apologize.  "I don't normally let just any ruffians into my bed." She said in the darkness, and he laughed. She was adorable, even now. Even after all of this. She'd saved him, and she was right. Even as it was, he was in her bed. A soft sense of quiet settled over him and he closed his eyes and sank into sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Continued.


     James turned the corner trying to keep his composure.  somewhere between skipping and running away in a hurry, he turned the nearest corner and stopped.  Closing his eyes he leaned back against the rough brick wall and tilted his face up to the sunlight.  He slowly replayed the entire scene through his mind. He kicked himself for all the things that he could have said.  All the things he wanted to... all the things he'd preconceived nights, days and weeks before.  Some of them were barely coherent lingering thoughts of when he was still feathered, some of them the vivid sharp and well composed things of his person. "You're a fool." He muttered to himself and pushed off from the wall and meandered back onto the sidewalk.

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     Stephanie was knocked from her reverie  by the sounds of her co-workers arguing in the back. Frank raising his voice was such an oddity that she wasn't quite sure what was happening at first.  She burst through the double doors to the back of the bakery to see Raquel standing on her tip toes pointing her finger in Franks face, red cheeked with tears welling up in her eyes. Frank was squinting his eyes, silently daring her to make another mistake.
     "Hey!" Stephanie surprised herself.  The voice coming out of her was strong. Immediate. Intense.  Both of the offending parties turned and looked at them. Frank immediately softened but Raquel's eyes were sharp. Focused. Falcon's eyes.  Her full lips were pressed into a tight line on her face. Her hand was still clenched in a fist with one trembling finger pointing at Frank's face.
     "And you..." Raquel's voice was low. Dark. Promising a storm. "You're only ever half here anyhow.   Frank can't help but try to get his dick in that chastity belt of yours."  Steph's Jaw hit the floor.  What in the hell had just happened in here.
     "I don't know what I just walked in on."  Steph took a deep breath before she continued. "But I'd advise you to take a moment. Maybe a whole handful of fucking moments, before you speak again." Stephanie's cold blue eyes zeroed in on Raquel's face.  "I haven't done anything to you, and I don't know what you and Frank have been up to back here, but leave me out of it. You understand?" She watched as Raquel slowly unclenched her fist and blinked as if ever so slightly coming to her senses.
     "To hell with you both. I quit." Her voice was more defeat than anything now.  Too ashamed just to let it blow over and pretend she hadn't just blown her top. "I don't need either of you." She untied her half apron, balled it up and threw it right in Frank's face. "And you can pull it out your ass old man." She turned on her heel and left, slamming the back door.
     "Now..." she turned her ice cold eyes on Frank. "What in the hell was that about?" She raised her eyebrows and looked over at him just as he was trying to pull an innocent look out of his hat.  "Don't even try..." She tried to sound stern but it ended with her expression softening in a smile. She could never stay mad at the man.
     " I caught her pulling from the till. Not a big deal, she said she was flipping her tips from ones to big bills, but the last coupla weeks, we've been five and ten, sometimes fifteen short.  Told her I couldn't have unaccounted hands going in and out...  " Frank gave a heavy sigh and ran his thick bakers hands across his hair. "It could be her. It could be any of the other kids too... I guess she took it personal man."  His faded Jersey accent fluttering back in. He must really be upset.  Only other time it comes back is after too many shots of Jack down at the bar.
     "Let her be pissed for awhile. She'll talk it out with Lindsay or one of the other girls and feel like an asshole.  I'm sure she'll come back. If not, she wasn't meant to be." She strode over to his side and gave him a hug. "Don't let it get you down because you were doing the right thing." She gave a half shrug and plucked Raquel's apron from where it half hung from his arm. "Help me get this dump shined up will ya?" She said tugging him by his apron towards the back. "Besides, we can call Phillip in to help out this evening.  Wasn't he looking for any loose shifts?"
     Frank screwed up his face. "I don't really like that kid." He made this wavy motion with his hands. She'd learned over the years of knowing him that it meant he wasn't one hundred percent on something. 'half and half hands' she called them.  "Somethings not right about him."
      "He's an okay kid. Just dark around the edges.  Some folks are." Steph shook her head a little bit. "You're always  looking for trouble Frankie." She tossed him a couple of rags and watched him wipe down the stainless counter while she went to clean the baking sheets. "Give him a few years to find himself you know?"
     Frank bowed his head over his work, scrubbing extra hard at some invisible spots on the surface of the counter.  It's true that he'd been over protective of Steph since he met her. Instantly in love.  Not lust. Not even physical really. Just instantly, he knew that his life wouldn't be the same if she wasn't in it.  They'd gone on a date which was awkward and fumbling.  He didn't even try for a kiss.  And all of a sudden she was his best friend. Someone he needed around. That he wanted to talk to. For a guy like him, that was rare enough. He'd been furious when Raquel said what she did.  Never had an urge to hit a lady before. Hell, She was barely out of diapers, but the urge had been there that time.  Not like that Phillip Kid.  He stole a glance in Stephanie's direction, instantly feeling a pang of guilt.  She didn't know. He hadn't told her.  Now he was too afraid to say anything. What was there to say? He caught Phillip staring her down. Between the double doors. Out of the back door.  From behind the counter. Always where she couldn't see him. Always with this look on his face. He cornered Phillip one day. The kid snapped a photo on his phone and he lost it. Shoved the kid against the wall. Told him if he was gonna creep on the women in the shop that he was out of a job. No more problems yet, but he couldn't trust him.   Frank shook his head. "We're gonna call Lisa instead.  I think she said she needed some extra Dough."  Frank laughed at his own joke and threw the rags in the maintenance sink across the room.  Stephanie rolled her eyes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     The wind threw a serious updraft at Milane and it whizzed and wheezed through the gaps in his flight feathers. It was a cold and angry sound, pushing him from side to side.  Two days.  He'd made himself stay away from her for two days.  Somewhat just to prove he could. Some just to prove that he wasn't obsessed. Possessed. That he was in control.  He heaved a black bird sigh which was lost on the wind before it began.  Tilting his wings into the blasted wind he cut the corner of the building and landed on the window sill.  He raised his beak to tap on the glass but something chilled him to the core. He was frozen. Avian instincts sensing that something was wrong. Some nameless, shapeless thing was waiting out in the night. Dark eyes flicking over every possible cause. The fear crept under his feathers, puckering his bird skin.  He nearly gave up, chalking it up to nerves.  He could see her through the distorted pane of glass.  Sprawled on her couch, unaware of anything happening.  Then it was there. The movement. The glint. A flash of wet light off of glasses.  The roof of the building next door.  His thoughts were a quick slip of images and sensations, urges, instincts.  Blond hair, flash of light. His wings flickered almost beyond his control, bidding him to take flight immediately.
      He turned his back to the window pane and focused his dark tempest eyes on the predator. On the thing that was hunting. The blond stranger was looking through something. A camera. Milane could see his head bob a few times, looking through the view finder then with his eyes and back again, curious about the bird.  There was a sudden shift behind him. "Milane." It was a warm soft sound.  Stephanie always sounded like this if she'd been sleeping. Dreams still hanging at the corner of her eyes. She smiled a groggy easy smile at the bird, but a panic rose in him. Away! his insides screamed. Fly away stephanie!  But of course, how could she know. He flew into the apartment in a flurry of feathers and desperation.  Launched himself in her direction, flapping his wings.  She fell on her back a good three feet away from the window, and he landed on her chest. His talons gripped the material of her sweater just above her rib cage, but to her credit she didn't squeal or swat at him, she just stared up in disbelief and didn't, for the life of her, move her hands even an inch.
     "Well someone is having quite the day aren't they" she blinked a few slow blinks and began to make a move to sit up, but he cawed at her darkly and pecked at her hands if she tried to move him.  When it became obvious that she wasn't going to let him dissuade her from moving he flapped back to the window.  The stranger was still there. Though now he was barely a distinguishable lump against the facade of the building. He cawed again. This time out the window. A Raven's warning.  A promise to that dark shadow hunting her.  He looked over his shoulder at Stephanie one last time then shoved off of the ledge and into the wind.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     Phillip couldn't believe his luck the day he'd actually found roof access across the street from Steph's place.  He could still taste the excitement every time he pulled that memory up. Those quick glimpses of her between the curtains. He pulse would jump.  The big window by the kitchen was the easiest to see. He made himself slow his breathing down. Forced himself to concentrate.
     This one. She was exciting. Something electric about her.  He sometimes felt he could smell the blood in her veins.  Could taste in anticipation, the way fear would settle in her eyes. On her skin. The way he knew she would quiver for him. Beg for him.. if he ever got to take her the way he wanted to.  But she made him sloppy. Anxious.  That stupid faggot Frank at work nearly broke his ribs when he walked in and saw  him snapping shots of her through the double doors to the front.  He spit on the gravel of the rooftop thinking about him.  Oh the things he would do to Frank as well.  Maybe tie him up and let him watch while he unwound Steph right in front of him.  He smirked, there was merit to that idea.
     He lowered his face to the camera again and twisted the end of his telescope lens. He could see the blue flashes cast across the room from where she was watching T.V.  He willed her to move. To come to the window.  To let herself show off for him. He knew down deep that she wanted him. She always touched his hand. His shoulder. She even touched his hip one day. Flirting with him. Showing him how much she needed him. She always looked him right in the eye too. Those soft little blue orbs just calling to him. He suppressed a shiver and focused on a moving spot against the window.  A bird...a big fucking bird. He squinted through the view finder and then lifted his head trying to focus on the shape.  Just then the window opened and there she was. All soft curves and long black hair. He nearly dropped the camera off the side of the building. He lowered his face and snapped a series of shots before the bird launched itself into the apartment. He squinted and looked and waited, but he didn't see the bird again... not until it was too late.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

     Milane was on the bastard before he knew what was happening. He swooped down low and nearly touched his belly to the dark grey brick of the building on his way up.  He was an explosion of black feathers in the face of this creepy bastard. He snatched out with talons and gripped flesh, but not enough to hold onto.  The coward spun and made a grab for his camera but Milane was quicker. He circled over head then swooped down and snatched at the strap, making the man lose his grip on the thing. It bounced one good time on the lip of the rooftop before it did a quick spin right over the edge.
     He gave a loud gloating Caw, but too soon.  The Stranger was swinging his knapsack at him.  The thick canvas of the bag made heavier contact that one would assume it could. The motion swatted the bird out of the air, sprawling him out on the gravel of the rooftop.  Milane couldn't get his bearings fast enough, and before he knew it, there was a booted foot kicking him. Two kicks was all it took before Milane could get himself in a lopsided wobble, and throw himself over the side of the building.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

     Steph couldn't shake her bad day.  Raquel left her feeling hollow in the pit of her stomach.  Not so much what her former friend had said, but that absolute look of hate and disgust on her face.  She shook her head, she didn't understand people. She probably never would.
     Heaving a sigh she unlocked the door to her apartment. Fat Spanky made figure eights around her ankles as she tried like hell to push those thoughts from the back of her eyes.  Was she really that horrible of a person. Was she leading Frank on?  She threw her sweater over the arm of the sofa and bent to pay her tithings to the fluffy man of the house.  "Bet you want some noms big man." She cooed at spanky as she made her way to his food dish.
     After her 'get home' chores were done, she still couldn't shake that feeling. She glanced at the computer but the appeal wasn't there. She made a slow circle around the apartment before she settled for a beer and the remote.  She was nearly blurry eyed and half insane from reality television when she noticed Milane on the window sill.  Her heart skipped a beat she was so excited.  clumsily she set her bottle on the side table and slid over to the window and opened it. "Milane" She whispered softly.  She had tried not to startle him, but apparently failed as he came tumbling into her window all squawks and feathers.  After a few minutes he shot back out the window and she clambered to look out.
     "What the hell was.." By the time she focused on the roof top in the building across from her, all she managed to see was the silhouette of someone swatting her bird from the air, and then the small shape limping and flopping over the edge of the building and plummeting into the shadows below.  She couldn't help it. She felt it bubbling up from her chest, burning her throat on the way out.  A loud coarse scream that clawed it's way out of her.  She half crawled, half fell across the room to the door.  She slung herself out of it and pulled it tight behind her and flew down the stairs to the street.
     It felt like hours. Panic was gnawing at her stomach and the base of her spine. Where is he? She tried to be slow and methodical.  Begged herself to be steady.  That pushing to fast wouldn't help. She felt glass crunch under foot and it slowed her down. She squinted her eyes in the dark trying to make out shapes, and found a busted camera against the edge of the curb. She turned it over in her hands checking it out. The lens had been busted out and there was massive amounts of damage done to the body, she was just putting the strap of it over her shoulder before she heard it.  The sound made her heart clench and pause before beating double time in retaliation.  A low whimpering sounding caw. A croak. Milane lay on his side, his legs quivering and one very badly broken wing twitching at the joint where it met his body.  "Oh my baby." she whispered.  she knelt in the dirt and the glass of the sidewalk and as gently as she possibly could she scooped him up into the fabric of her sweater.  "Don't please don't."  she sobbed.  He'd been her only confidant for so long. What kind of asshole would do this? She said nonsense. Stupid words that had nearly no meaning. Just a soothing sound. Something to calm them both down as she made her way back to the safety of her apartment.

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more later. I'm surprised I've even kept this up. *chuckles*

Post Title

I find it bizarre that I have a person in alaska who occasionally reads my blog. 

Milane

     Stephanie reached over and clicked the button to power down her computer. The familiar mechanical lull of the fans whirring to an end comforted her as she stretched in her office chair.  She rubbed her hands over her face, the seemingly too long day, now behind her. Work. Family. Near disasters. Things around the apartment, bills piling up.  Not to mention the aching lack of a social or love life. Exasperated as it all rolled through her head she made her way to the kitchen. The faint smell of hours old coffee beckoning her.
     A familiar peck and scrape at her window caught her attention. "Milane" she grinned the word.  From behind the half fogged window pane a pair of glittering black eyes peered back. With a grunt she lifted the window open and a big black raven hopped up onto the ledge.  From the couch her fat cat Spanky yowled in low protest, but didn't bother to get up. "Hush you." she chided the cat, who of course licked a paw and chose to ignore her.
     "Welcome back mister." She held out a hand as she always did, which the raven eye'd disdainfully before pecking at her fingertip. "I know. I know" She looked at the bird again. Longing to touch those glossy blue black feathers, but gave a sigh as she made her way to the fridge. "Filet mignon tonight?" she chirped at the bird, who responded with a hop and scrape of talons against the wood of the window sill. She pulled out the left over steak and pulled apart hunks and offered them gingerly one by one to the handsome beast on her window.  He was large, even for a raven. Feathers always pristine and darker than an oil slick. blue and green highlights sliding across the surface of them. Surreal. She imagined them warm, but slick as ice.  She was  rocked from her reverie by a low gravely sound and the bird regarding her with those dark eyes. He tilted his head, pecked her fingertip again gently and in a big rush of plumage was back out the window.

     Steph sighed, feeling a familiar since of forlorn as she watched the bird dip into the alley and disappear around the side of her apartment building. Shivering as the night filtered into the room, she stood and slammed the window closed.

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     Milane dipped and rocked on the city wind. The glow of the apartment fading behind him then blinded by the garish lights of downtown.  His hunger satisfied his thoughts roll back to Stephanie.  He composed an explanation in his head, as he had done dozens of times before. "I'm not really a Crow Steph.  I'm a human with ... a condition. I've seen you down at the bakery.  You don't know it's me because you never look up" He let out a loud caw. Even as a bird it sounded bitter and full of disdain.
     A few miles across the city, Milane landed on a brick ledge outside of an open window and peered in. Lights off, furniture empty. All of his things just as he'd left them. folded. Neat. clean and in their place.  He couldn't bare to go inside yet, so he ruffled his dark feathers and nestled down against the brick and tucked his beak into his plumage against the wind.

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     Late again, but she couldn't seem to muster up that sense of urgency that usually comes with it.  She slapped the alarm clock as the snooze went off again. In a fit of defeat it clattered to the ground and she pushed her face into the pillow. "serves you right minion of doom" Her sleep slurred words muffled by her pillow, but she drug herself out of her quilts and to the bathroom to get ready for work.
     Half an hour later, the sense of urgency found her again with a fierceness. She clambered onto the bus and pushed her way to a seat near the door. Frank was going to kill her if she kept being this irresponsible. She pushed it from her mind and tucked her long dark hair into a bun, elbowing the bag lady next to her accidentally.  She muttered an apology and shot from her seat at the next stop, hopping down the stairs.  She accidentally bumped into another stranger as she fumbled with her bag as she left the bus. "I'm so sorry."  She flushed and looked down at the toes of her shoes. "Not a problem" The mans voice was gentle and warm, but she couldn't make herself look up.  She ducked down her alley way and burst through the side door, skidding on the back kitchen's tile floor. "Frank!" She called as she tossed her bag and sweater to the side and snagged her apron from the peg. "Damn it frank! I'm in"  She didn't wait for him to respond, he'd come find her.  Instead she busied herself prepping dough and putting it to the side. braiding bread and frosting cinnamon buns.
     A deep voice from the doorway popped her out of focus "I should let you be late every day"  Franks formidable frame filled the doorway as he chuckled at her. She looked up from her work and saw all the work lined up on the counter ready to go. She flushed a bit and looked down
     "Guilt will do that to a person" She blew a strand of hair out of her face and ran over and stood on her tiptoes giving Frank a kiss on the cheek. He blushed and she swiped his other cheek with flour.
     "I'd give you a walloping if you were my girl" He said sternly, but his eyes were dancing with laughter.  Frank had asked her out once before she worked at the shop. It'd been a quick and complete disaster that ended with the two of them being amazing friends. She'd do anything for him, and he'd helped her out of more than a few tight spots.
     "You wouldn't know what to do with a girl like me"  She laughed and ducked under his arm dancing out into the front room behind the counter. She wiped her hands off on her apron and gave a polite smile to Raquel, who was doing her best to serve three pushy customers at once. Raquel flashed her best coquettish smile at the three gentlemen and poured on an abundance of charm. Soon all three of them were in good spirits and laughing warmly.  "I'll bet you even wheedle a huge tip out  of all of them" Steph gave a contrived look of dismay at Raquel, who swished her hips while making an over the top flirty face at her in response.
     "They're all the same. They just want to feel doted on and special.  I'm good at that"  She winked at Steph before slipping behind the counter again "Am I good for a break?"
    "Yeah. I've got this for awhile" Other than the three gentlemen Raquel had already served, the front of the bakery was quiet.  Sunlight poured in the plate glass windows as people passed outside.  Stephanie gazed at them.  Somewhere between a warm enjoyable empathetic connection, and the ache and quiet truth that "There could just be more than that mundane life"  feeling edging around in her mind. Something unsettling. A weird tug or war seeming to happen in herself.  She let the smell of coffee and warm bread pull her back out of her strange mix of thoughts and to the task at hand as she began setting out pastries behind the glass cabinets.

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     James walked into 'the upper crust' as he had many times before.  He stopped outside of the building, looking in quietly through the window at the girl behind the counter. He watched her eyes unfocus as she lost herself in thought, and a series of quick emotions roll across her features.  He pulled his collar up in a losing battle against the city wind, and pushed the door to the shop open. "So we meet again."  He kept his voice low and easy, so as not to startle to the woman.  She slowly peered up at him from behind the counter.  A comical moment that seemed to be nothing but waves of black hair and too big blue eyes, peeking shyly up from behind the pastry display.
     "Do I know you?" She asked slowly. James blinked slowly and had to concentrate to keep his composure.  How did she not know how beautiful she was. How could she be so absolutely shy and self deprecating. He took a breath.
     "We bumped into each other, I assume on your way here" He watched recognition light up in her eyes and that flush creep across her cheeks. All he could do was chuckle and stuff his hands in his pockets.  "I didn't come to give you a hard time. I'm kind of addicted to your bagels and coffee" He tipped his head in the direction of the bagel rack
     "Oh man.  I'm so sorry about earlier.  I was running behind...." She caught herself in the middle of the explanation and forced herself to drop it.  "Hey man. On the house.  Please" She stumbled over getting his coffee and bagel. By the time she'd wrapped it up and returned he'd already tucked a twenty in the tip jar.
     "Well that's very sweet of you Steph." His voice was easy, and deep and calm as he spoke. But he could hear his heart thudding away in his chest a mile a minute.  Then it happened again, she flashed him that brilliant smile as she wished him a great day and apologized again. Time stopped for him. For that brilliant blaze of seconds... could have been hours.  He had no idea what her last sentence had been so he just nodded and ducked back out of the door into the wind, coffee in hand.

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     Raquel came back just in time to see James leave from the counter and head back out onto the street. The bounce of his dark brown curls of his pony tail across the lapel of his jacket. Those dark eyes looking back just as he passed the window. "Someone has a crush." She said very low, and suspiciously close to Steph's ear. Making her jump and spill her own coffee across her apron.
     "You ass." She took a deep breath and tossed the apron to the side and snagged another.  "Besides, I don't know who he is. Never seen him before. "  She bit her bottom lip thinking about the exchange at the counter and the way he seemed very familiar.
     "You're absolutely hopeless.  That guys in here nearly every day." Raquel shook her head and pushed past steph to go wipe down the counter. "He's handsome, you should ask him out." Her face spread in a wide mischievous smile. "When was the last time you even got laid Steph?" She ducked as a hand towel barreled its way through the air towards her.
     "None of your damn business little one" She tried to sound stern but it came out with a bubble of laughter. "Probably far longer than I want to admit out loud" She reached up to straighten her name tag and realized it wasn't there.  She walked to her grab her coffee covered apron to retrieve it.
     "Well I might have me a date tonight" Raquel did her favorite eyebrow wiggle and held up the ten dollar tip she received earlier from one of the three customers when she'd arrived, and there were numbers and a heart scrawled in marker across it.
     "Well.. if that isn't classy" She plucked her old apron from the hamper and hunted for her tag. Nowhere to be seen. "Quell have you seen my tag?" She touched her pants pockets double checking.
     "Counter in the back covered in flower you clutz" she called over her shoulder.
     He knew her name. She lifted her hand to where the tag should be, and her fingers played at the strap while her brain fiddled with the thought. "Thanks." she said absently.

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    Hopefully I'll finish this later.  I can see the story unfolding in my noggin. but my typing skills are quickly diminishing for the night. brain turning to jello.
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Happy Tree Friends.

Absolute Drunken silliness on New Years. 

One of the best times of my life.  I spent it with the most perfect person for me. 

I met the most brilliant wonderful peoples and ... well just and. ... 

Also... yes. those are pigtails.