102 replies to this topic

[Emerald39]

#18

Vincent took the canvas from the easel, placed it on a nearby table, and then gave the boy a new clean canvas. "You had the correct initial idea, but then you overcomplicated it. Tomorrow morning, I want you to re-capture that image, and then try to do what I just demonstrated; it will be hard at first, I have no doubt, but you will eventually get used to it."

Auror nodded. "Understood, Vincent. Well then, I guess it's time to sleep; see you in the morning."

Van Gogh nodded in agreement, and watched as the boy walked up the stairs to the house's spare bedroom. Once he was out of sight, and was assumed to be asleep, Vincent sighed and sat down in one of the chairs surrounding the dining table. "What am I doing? I've never had an apprentice before. I know I should be kinder to him and give him easier tasks, but something seems to prevent me from doing so. Why is that? Is it to do with that boy's parents? Maybe; especially with his father. I guess that he never told Auror the truth about his fame...that he actually was famous and powerful, but...under a...different...guise..."

With that, van Gogh fell asleep in the chair, and the house became deathly quiet. Only a light swirling sound of wind could be heard, echoed by the painting across the night sky. 

*

Unbeknownst to both of them, a mysterious figure was watching them from within the dimension sphere, monitoring everything inside the house. Vincent's rambling had excited this person, as it knew that knowledge was power in this world. The figure mumbled to itself. "I must have that kid; his power shall be mine."

Edited by Emerald39, 18 April 2016 - 06:15 AM.

[Bokuboy]

#19 (edit: forgot the number)

 

Auror awoke the next morning, determined to make vanGogh proud. He took his supplies and easel, and went back to the field he'd been in yesterday. He set everything up in the exact spot it was before, taking his time to get everything right. Auror tried his Finger-Capture technique, to get the tree again... and it didn't work. Auror shook his head and did the proper motions, and tried again.... and he got nothing. He slapped himself on both sides of his face, rubbed his hands together like he was warming them in front of a fire, and did the Finger-Capture technique again. Once again, he got nothing.

 

Auror didn't know what to do. It had always worked before. He'd see something, then use the technique to create the image, and then apply it to the paper. But today... for some reason, he couldn't do it. He turned around in a circle to see anything else he could use it on. He tried the little shack, the tombstone, and even the horizon.... and still, he got nothing. Auror was filled with frustration, because he knew that his mentor Vincent would not be happy if he returned without at least some kind of sketch. He placed a piece of paper down and picked up his charcoal. He stared at the tree, looking where it bent and turned in the wind. He tried his best for over an hour, but all he could do was a poor rendition of a stick tree.

 

He didn't know what to do! His frustration burst from him in a loud scream and he flung his easel and the supplies across the field. His bellow had startled a nearby bird and a paintbrush bounced off it's pearch. It cawed at him and took off. It was a crow. Or.. it could be a raven! Yes! He gazed at the sight of it's flight and without thinking he used his technique and captured the image of the bird! His relief filled him and he collapsed to the ground. He stared with wonder at the image. Te bird seemed almost... alive... and there was the tree behind the bird! He looked up to see where the raven had fled.. but he didn't see it anywhere. Auror shrugged his shoulders and took the image to his scattered supplies. He flipped a piece of paper over and applied the Finger-Capture to it so he wouldn't lose it. He labored for a while to get all the things that he'd scattered. Luckily, his easel was unbroken. It had just folded up when he'd tossed it.

 

He took everything back to their studio. He didn't want to take the chance that anything would be lost. He's show vanGogh what he could do with this new image!

Edited by Bokuboy, 19 April 2016 - 12:38 AM.

[pdaangsakti21]

#20

"what the hell..."

 

it was Vincent van Gogh, who was muttering those words of disbelief. upon seeing the sketch Auror handed to him a few seconds ago he noticed something strange.

no, it was something only artists with high capability of dimensional barrier like van Gogh could notice one.

 

"is something wrong with it?" Auror saw the astonished face and at the same time also realized that there was nothing of delight. it was pure astonishment and leaning a bit to fear. Auror himself didn't realize the bizzare thing happening to his unfinished sketch, he just satisfied that his Finger Frame coupled with ome unfinished scribbles as drafts he showed to his master. he thought it turned out well, as the raven looked so alive.

 

"this... you might ended up having a dangerous power."

 

"???"

 

scratching his hair, van Gogh explained briefly to his confused disciple. "you already aware of my power, right? it creates boundaries where the space within it accelerates in time, resulting it to catch a rapid flow of time faster than outside the boundaries. while people, or animals inside it can somehow exit the boundaries themselves pretty much easily... yours here forcibly trap live time flow in your own micro dimension. the worst part, it loops endlessly without you directly controlling it."

 

"...oh my god..." Auror turned pale. he finally realized why the raven in his painting looked alive. it was alive afterall, living there trapped by the infinite loop of his Finger Frame dimension.

 

somehow, van Gogh was indifferent and calm. it was because he knew what caused his apprentice to catch this power, and as a maestro he knew how to make things right.

 

"listen here. good thing that i'm your master, i know exactly how to dispel this kind of dimensions. first, you've been practicing Finger Frame and had no difficulties in capturing everything, but it was perfected, i assume, just right before you drew this."

 

Auror recalled the frustrations he had this morning, and nodded.

 

"this happened because you put too much power when trying to capture using perfected Finger Frame that the actual things ended up snatched into the dimension boundaries. so now a question for you: based on what i told you just now, how can you break your own dimensions?"

[Emerald39]

#21

The boy shrugged. "I don't know, remove some of the energy from the image?"

Vincent clicked his fingers at him. "Exactly. By draining that energy from the capture, you thereby weaken the boundaries of the dimension, allowing for time-flow synchronisation and the freedom of the raven. Now, you do have the sketch of that, right?"

Auror nodded. "Of course."

He pointed to the canvas, with the charcoal image etched onto it. Vincent smiled. "Excellent. Well, what are you waiting for? Free the bird; I'll hold the paper for you."

With that, the old man assumed a stance similar to a karate master, and held the image out to the boy. Auror placed his hand on it, and tried to imagine drawing out the raven from the capture, like a fisherman drawing out a trout from a lake. Suddenly, the image glowed, and a small sphere formed above it; from there, a bird call could be heard echoing. Without hesitation, the raven flew straight out of the forcefield-like orb, and into the sky; the sphere then receded slightly into the capture, adopting a more elliptical shape. 

The boy didn't know what to say. "What is that?"

Vincent pointed at it, placing the paper horizontal to the floor. "That's your dimension. It's got looser boundaries, but if you loosen it further, it can encompass the space that mine can. You are quite a fascinating case; you took my own power to the next level. I will need to investigate this further; so, for now, get some rest."

With that, he ushered the boy to bed, then collapsed in the chair next to the table. "This is bad. If he can do this with my power alone, he could cause further chaos with other powers that other artists have. I need to keep him safe...but if necessary...I might...need to...kill..."

*

The same figure was watching them again. It chuckled at the news leaked by Vincent. "So, that boy can enhance powers, eh? Looks like my plan will need to be accelerated further; I cannot afford to lose an asset like him."

Edited by Emerald39, 19 April 2016 - 10:13 AM.

[pdaangsakti21]

#22

the next morning right after breakfast, Vincent told Aurur to go out and practice controlling his output. he said, "can't really say not to use Finger Frame but to be on the safe side, practice it until you can catch only the image and not the actual thing. if you trap something again just release like yesterday. oh, and, while you're out grab me some dried fruits."

 

so he walked to his hometown, capturing and releasing small animals along the way. he tried to lower his power when capturing but each time he tried, he ended up having to release the poor animals again and again.

 

"geez, i can redraw the energy without problem but why can't i control the capturing output? how can i control this power anyway?"

complaining to himself, he arrived at the old town. he walked to the park in hope to find a nice place to capture birds while not hammering his own foul mood.

 

"Auror?"

a girl called over him. he turned to see the voice owner and it turned out to be his childhood friend Marie.

 

"Marie? hi, long time no see."

"ah, yes indeed. i heard from aunt Emin and old man Felbart that you were shopping at their place a week ago. say, why didn't you drop by our place?"

"my bad, Marie. i was quite in a hurry back then, Vincent was quite eager to have me start my own paintings. by the way you look prettier now."

 

Marie was a cute girl, in fact, the cutest girl around his age. her smooth brunette hair tied in a ponytail, her big round brown eyes and cheeks that looked a bit plump was her main charm.

 

"why thank you. we are in the right age to marry, so i thought i would take care of myself at least. anyway what are you doing this time?"

"well i'm... practicing. my first creation was quite a mess so Vincent sent me to practice a bit."

"so you're not in a hurry this time around, right? mind if i tag along?"

"it's cool, but maybe you'll get bored in no time."

"it's settled then."

 

so the two youth headed to the park, stopped by some snack stands to buy van Gogh's snacks as well as their own, and finally picked a place at the corner of the park. in between Auror's catch-and release (which puzzled Marie) the two youths spent time leisurely talked about everything that both of them lost track of time. it was almost dark by the time they realized.

 

"it's getting late, i have to go back home. are you still going to be here?" Marie stood up and tidied her skirt.

"i think so. i still want to practice a bit. at least even if i get back home late there won't be any wild beasts outside the town so it's safe."

"even if you say that, what about dinner?"

"...ooops."

"then come to my house, okay?"

 

after some arguments, Auror agreed to have dinner at her place. when they were on their way someone called,

"excuse me, young fellows..."

 

it was the same person spied at van Gogh's hut, but of course Auror didn't know yet.

[Emerald39]

#23

The boy was a bit surprised by the call, but he still respectively turned to face the caller. It was a middle-aged man, about 5'10", and with a short brown beard that matched his curly hair. He approached the two of them. "Do you know where I could find some art supplies in this town? My workshop burnt down last week, and I need some new equipment to replace it."

Auror jumped up and clicked his feet together, a bit of a flashy move. "No problem. If it's art supplies you're looking floor, you need to head to Miss Emin's shop; it's the third street on your right, next to the town hall."

The man tipped his cap to him. "Thank you, young lad."

Suddenly, Marie chirped up. "So what's your name, mister?"

The brown-haired gentleman laughed. "Gaughin. You may have heard of me; then again, you may have not."

The mere mention of his name made Auror shudder. This was the man that had once been Vincent's friend; what was he doing out here? Last he'd heard, Gaughin lived in Ars, in a small one-storey house opposite a park. If he was here, then Vincent could be in danger. 

Gaughin looked at Auror. "Are you okay, boy? You look a little faint."

Auror shook his head. "I'm fine, don't worry. I guess it's only fair to introduce ourselves: I am Auror, and this is my friend Marie."

The man shook their outstretched hands. "Nice to meet you both. Well, I won't keep you waiting; see you later."

As they went their separate directions, the boy felt fear, deep within his heart, that he had never felt before. His power's awakening, the appearance of Gaughin, Vincent's wavering mood; something big was about to unfold, and it wouldn't be 'pretty as a picture'.

[Bokuboy]

#24

 

Auror rushed back to vanGogh's studio to tell him that Gaughin had shown up. He searched and searched, but to no avail. Vincent could not be found! In a panic he went outside to the nearby feild in the faint hope that Vincent would be there. No sign of him could be found. Auror's mind whirled in circles while he tried to think of some place that his mentor could be.

 

"The river!" Auror shouted and ran through the field to the other side. He jumped over the fence without even realizing he'd reached it and then ran across another field to yet another fence. The neighbors really didn't like it when vanGogh and Auror went through their field without permission, but this was an emergency. Vincent must be told! The fence was a bit higher on this side so Auror had to climb it before leaping to the other side. When he landed, he felt a sharp pain in his foot and fell to the ground on his face.

 

"Argh!"

 

Auror rolled over onto his back to check out how hurt he was. He rubbed his face and nothing there seemed to be broken. He checked his knees and they were fine, but when he tried to grab his foot, a really sharp pain lanced through his ankle and up his leg.

 

"No. No!"

 

Auror tried his best to stand again, but he just couldn't put any weight at all on his foot. He was actually closer to Vincent's studio than he was to the river, so he decided to crawl back to there. He got back through the fence easily enough. He should have crawled through in the first place, but in his haste he'd made the critical mistake of jumping where he couldn't see where he was landing. The grass in both fields was actually quite high, now that Auror could see it from this angle. Unfortunately, that also meant that no one could see him as he crawled through it. No help would come. It took a long time for him to get across the field with only one good leg to crawl with. When he got to the first fence, he noticed there wasn't any way to crawl through. He'd have to go over. There weren't any handholds that he could see. It was just smooth stone. He pulled himself up into a sitting position next to the fence to see if he could reach it that way. He could! He got a good grip on the top, pulled with all his strength and pushed with his good leg. Auror lay on the top and rested.Who would have thought that losing the use of a single leg would be so exausting? How had he gotten over it the first time? He couldn't remember. Auror rolled over the edge of the fence and tried to land on just his good leg, but he couldn't see how far down in the grass the ground was and he misjudged.

 

"Gah!"

 

Pain shot through his ankle again and he fell to the ground. He spit out the grass he'd gotten in his mouth and cursed himself silently.

 

"Stupid. Stupid. STUPID!"

 

He got moving again and made his way across the field and back to the studio. He got the door opened and slid inside. He dragged himself to his cot and managed to get up on it with only a small amount of pain.

He let out a sigh of relief and fell asleep almost immediately.

[Emerald39]

#25

The boy awoke with fear on his mind. Unfortunately, that meant that he also fell out onto the floor, landing on his now-swollen ankle. The pain struck immediately, and he winced; but it also reminded him of what he was going to do. "Vincent? You there?"

He heard a thud from downstairs, and then a flurry of thuds as the man himself entered the attic space. "Auror? What are you doing on the floor?"

Auror pointed to his ankle. "I hurt my foot yesterday, and so I can't walk properly."

The old man raised an eyebrow. "How did you hurt yourself?"

His reply was instant. "I was trying to find you. I have some important news for you: Gaughin's arrived."

The mere mention of that name froze van Gogh in his place. His muscles contracted, and his eyes became mirrors, reflecting the fear and confusion within him. He quickly snapped out of this trance-like state and helped Auror up. "Where is he? What town? What are his motives? I need answers, quickly!"

The boy shakily answered them. "Marie and I ran into him in Tela; he was looking to acquire new art supplies from Miss Emin's shop, because his workshop burnt down."

Vincent stared into his eyes. "Did you direct him to her shop?"

I hastily lied out of fear. "Marie did."

Vincent stared for what seemed like an eternity, and then he slumped down onto the floor in a heap, and Auror with him. "Oh no."

The boy was confused. "What's the problem, Vincent?"

The artist laid a hand on his shoulder. "I think Miss Emin might be dead."

Auror was shocked. "WHAT?? Why would Gaughin do that?"

Van Gogh sighed. "Because I know the man: cold, deceiving and determined. Gaughin used to be an amiable artist; everyone liked him, and his artworks pleased millions. But then there was our fight, and that's when he changed; now, he's a mad killer who absorbs the powers of other artists. If he's here, then he's after me, and if that's so, then I may have to initiate the Stratagem."

[pdaangsakti21]

#26

Auror fell into panic as he felt terribly guilty about miss Emin. but pondering what to do, he was at loss. it wasn't like he could rush there immediately with his bad leg either, but he thought he needed to do something.

 

"Vincent, can't we do something?"

 

"...right. it's regrettable about Emin but there are other artists with good powers. probably that bar singer with Paralyze Overvoice also being targeted. at the very least we should inform the Major and guard office."

then Vincent rummages his toolbag on his waist, picked the softest brush in his possession, and pour some inks on Auror's palette.

 

"Vincent, what are you doing?"

"be quiet and just let me do it, you'll understand"

 

then quickly Vincent let his brush dancing on Auror's sprained ankle, drawing some kind of geometrical patterns that overlapped each other in order and color.

 

"...woah! that's cool!"

"yeah, how 's it? should be 3 more minutes before your ankle healed completely."

"really, to accelerate only my ankle, you are a genius, Vincent!"

"because it's just a sprained ankle. if it's a bad fracture i won't recommend doing this trick as the bones will heal in a strange way."

 

they took this opportunity to swiftly prepare. soon after his leg healed they rushed to Tela, but  upon arrival found something strange.

 

"...there was no commotion?" Auror muttered.

"anyway let's check Tracey's." by the master's words both of them walked briskly to Tracey's, and...

 

"good morning! huh, how unusual to see Mr. van Gogh in the town? how can i help you?"

 

Emin Tracey cheerfully greeted the dumbfounded duo.

Edited by pdaangsakti21, 21 April 2016 - 10:30 AM.

[Emerald39]

#27

Auror stared at her in disbelief. "What? How? Vincent?"

Vincent sidled up next to him and whispered. "It's not an illusion; it's certainly her. I have no idea what Gaughin's up to, but he's now become way more unpredictable."

He backed away and turned to face Miss Emin. "Hi, Tracey. Listen, I was informed that an old friend of mine was arriving in this town today. Have you seen him?"

She looked back in wonder. "What does he look like?"

The old man held up his hand parallel to the ground. "About 6 feet tall, brown curly hair, possibly a beard."

She thought for a moment. "Hmm...I think I saw someone who matches that description. He was leaving via the south gate, towards the mountains."

The boy was surprised by this, but van Gogh wasn't. "Thank you, Tracey. Come on, Auror; we need to catch up to him."

Auror nodded. "Okay. Thanks, Miss Emin."

As they ran off, when they were out of sight, Tracey's face changed to reveal a sickly grin. "You're welcome. Hope you find him, my VICTIMS."

*

The duo ran down the path leading to the mountain range. Auror was surprised by the old man's speed and endurance. "Wow, you're quite fit for your age."

Vincent rolled his sleeve up a bit, revealing a painting tattooed on his arm. "That's the power of art for you."

As they continued to sprint down the path, the boy was unsure about something. "Vincent, if your friend was as crazy as you said, why didn't he kill Miss Emin?"

The old man froze. "Because they're both as crazy as each other."

[pdaangsakti21]

#28

it was quite some time they sprinted along the road. they even reached the mountain range and they found nothing, not even traces of wandering human. the last sign they found was about 2 hours ago when they passed a sheperd and he told them "i've been here since dawn and i've seen nobody crossed this road but you two."

 

"strange. we'd stumble him already."

"Vincent, maybe he never left Tela. Miss Emin said he 'headed' here, doesn't necessarily means Gaughin actually 'goes' here, right?"

"true. then let's head back. dammit we even forgot our breakfast and we're forced to sprint for a long time. that bastard Gaughin!"

 

in his grumblings they both sprinted back to Tela. due to hunger they slowed down a little bit while looking for wild fruits and edible grass along their path. it was then, a voice out of nowhere reached to them.

 

"huh, van Gogh and Goghlis? what are you doing here, did you already meet your friend?" said Emin Tracey.

"Miss Emin? no we haven't... maybe we missed him and we're heading back to town. although, we're hungry so we plucked edible grass here and there."

"...Auror, get behind me."

"Vincent?"

 

van Gogh's gaze was as cold as ice, scanning every bit of the woman. she was wearing her usual patron dress and thin sandals, which was not good for traveling on such a terrain.

"looks like you got us, Gaughin." Vincent said in a deep and hateful voice.

 

the woman smirked, and "well, it's your own fault... or rather, you're growing senile. dear partner, did you forget already? that i can not conceal this part?" opened her gloves and showed the left hand's little finger. it was burnt.

 

"...i don't know, Tracey always wear that kind of gloves when she doesn't work on her sculptures" Vincent replied bitterly.

"well well... she's your ex so she was a... perfect tool for me." her voice turned to that of a middle aged man's. heard that, Auror opened his eyes in confusion.

"young lad... you don't get it? fine i'll show you..."

 

Tracey's head turned upward facing the sky, her mouth opened wide. following that, a deep blue substance that looked like slime crawled out from her mouth, and found its way beside Tracey. when the last drop of slime exited her mouth, her head dropped but she was still standing motionless. after some time, the slime finally took a shape, a figure of a man taller than Tracey's or van Gogh's but thinner than both of them. gradually the purple tinge faded and reveals Gaughin's real appearance.

 

"ta-daaaah~~"

[Bokuboy]

#29

 

Vincent whipped out his paintbrush and with a few quick strokes, painted a crossbow in mid-air. He grabbed it by the handle and flung the crossbow bolt towards Gaughin. Unfortunately, Gaughin wasn't a slouch in the artistry craft and had made a shield for himself. The bolt struck it and he laughed.

 

"You always were a quick draw, vanGogh."

"You as well, Gaughin."

 

They nod to each other and toss their things aside and they dissipate in the wind. The things they make weren't solid unless they were touching them. Auror had never sen anything like it before. He was about to say something when he was struck in the chest with something. He stumbled to the ground and looked at what had hit him. It was Tracey's foot!

 

"What are you doing, Miss Emin?"

"Taking care of the riff-raff, of course."

 

She shifted her stance and brough her other foot down towards Auror's chest again, but he rolled out of the way and stood up.

 

"Don't make me do this." Auror said.

Tracey laughed a mad laugh that all evil people seem to have. It was a bit of a cliche, but there really wasn't anything Auror could say to her about it. She stepped forward and he stepped back.

"Afraid are you?" Tracey sneered at him.

Auror didn't take the bait and continued to pace backwards slowly. She followed just as slowly. Vincent and Gaughin were calling things into being and using them the whole time, but each seemed to be a match for the other. One would create a weapon of some kind, and the other would create a counter for it. They danced around each other until Vincent was once again in front of Auror, but behind Tracey.

 

"Now! Vicncent hollered and ducked out of the way.

 

Auror took this chance to perform his Finger-Capture technique and used all of his might and will to suck in everything that he saw. Tracey screamed and screamed, and Gaughin cried, "Nooooo!" as they were transposed into the sub-dimension of Auror's creation. It shimmered and flickered in his hand, and Vincent approached him.

 

"Here." he said, and passed him a fresh piece of paper.

"Once you apply this, it'll be permanent. I felt how strong you made it. It cannot be undone."

 

Auror nodded and placed the image on the page. It rippled and shimmered and the paper itself seemed to come alive. When they looked at it, there were two dark and distorted figures. They didn't look like they did in real life.

 

"You captured their true essences, my boy. Not their empty and false shells. This is what they truly look like."

"It seems kind of anti-climactic, doesn't it?" Auror said.

"Ha! We could have died from an ambush and it was anti-climactic? It was all I could do to stave off the fool while you lured in Miss Emin. Good work, Auror... and thank you."

"You're thanking me? What for?"

"You've done something that I've never been able to do in all these years. You saved me from the horrible fate that Gaughin had in store for me. He seemed to be getting more powerful as I got older and older. It was only a matter of time that he'd have won and I'd be dust."

 

Auror nodded again, realizing that he could have lost Vincent today, as well as his own life.

 

"Well, I guess that's it then." Vincent said.

 

He took the paper from Auror and rolled it up. He shoved it unceremoniously into his clothes and grabbed Auror around the shoulders.

 

"Let's go home!" He said and laughed.

Auror laughed too as they headed home.

Edited by Bokuboy, 23 April 2016 - 04:44 PM.

[pdaangsakti21]

#30 (so it's my privilege to choose this story's continuation or end it? well, the first arc ended, hopefully the next person  begins the second arc. this is my personal wish, though)

 

the two walked leisurely to Tela, feeling relieved and trying to calm themselves down after the fight. Arrived at Tela they treated themselves with plentiful of snacks they bought on stalls around the park. enjoying their skewered chickens while sitting on the neat grass, a familiar figure approached.

 

"Auror! Mr. van Gogh! what a pleasure to meet you here!" said Marie.

"ah, hi Marie. well certainly it is rare for Vincent to stroll outside his hut, huh?"

"yes, yes. this is a rare event. come now, girl. we have plenty of food here so why don't you sit down and enjoy these treats wit us?"

"yes, thank you very much."

"oh? you got yourself a flute. since when?" Auror noticed her left hand held a beautiful wooden flute.

"hmm, it's around 5 years ago if i'm not mistaken. though i enjoy playing flute, i don't think i'm talented enough. maybe i'll stick to shoemaking afterall..." she dejectedly replied.

"why don't you play some notes? it's too early for you to decide if you're not talented or not. appraisal on artists are for the ones attending, not the artists themselves." van Gogh lightheartedly gave the young lady a good advice, which she instantly agreed.

"if you say so, then please listen."

she blowed air on her flute, her finger danced on the arranged holes along the piece of hollowed wood.

 

the sound she produced was disastrous.

 

the three chatted for some time and not long after that Marie excused herself. the two artists also followed along, leaving the park to their workshop. since their mood was elevated by the snacks and teasing Marie their steps were light.

 

"t-terrible! Tracey's... Tracey's...!"

 

someone shouted in panic. Auror and van Gogh who heard that, in unison they dashed to Tracey's shop.

there was a thick smell of blood. perhaps they didn't notice it because Gaughin erected some sort of barrier, but since Gaughin was sealed away the barrier finally collapsed, releasing the actual state of the shop. Auror and van Gogh braced themselves to the inner shop where Tracey's bedroom located. they knew the smell was originated from there.

 

"... ready, boy?"

"yes..."

 

with van Gogh as the lead, they entered the bedroom. Auror immediately lost the blood on his face, and all of the food he ate earlier was forced to exit from his mouth.

 

there lied the remains of a middle aged woman. her left half of her head up to the left ribcage was missing, her right knee below was disconnected, her crotch was torn open up to the belly button, and her stomach was empty; no innards could be seen from van Gogh's view.

 

"...Tracey... Gaughin you bastardddd!!!" Vincent van Gogh released his wail and struck the wall with all his might.

Edited by pdaangsakti21, 23 April 2016 - 05:58 PM.

[Emerald39]

#31

The old man trembled from the hit, and fell to his knees. "Even in eternal entrapment, he still manages to hurt me; I should have suspected that it wasn't the real Tracey."

Auror snapped out of the shock of the unsightly scene before him. "Surely we can bring her back, right? You must know someone who could revive the dead."

Vincent turned to face him, lavish streams beginning to flow from his eyes. "There is no one like that, my boy. The closest artist to a healer is Miss Erosa, and she can only perform her talents upon the living. We have to face the truth of the matter; she is gone forever. Life is a lot like an art movement: it's transient and eternal, as long as you support it. Without support, a life can just collapse and then fade away; but it is not forgotten by those who cared for it the most."

The boy began to water from his own eyes. "Then what do we do now?"

Van Gogh stared him straight in the eyes. "We give Tracey a proper burial."

*

Back at their cottage, the two men stood under the bent tree, where a headstone now stood. It was made of a slab of marble, created by Vincent, and inscribed with the following: 'Here lies Tracey Emin, the Master of Tela; her body may be dead, but her soul lives on in this tree. May she rest in gentle peace, settled in Nature's motherly arms.' Auror and Vincent were both standing tall, their heads lowered and the ground below them stained by their propinquitous tears. The boy was staring at the headstone, recalling the many times he'd had with Miss Emin during his childhood; Van Gogh was staring at the tree canopy, visualising Tracey's smiling ghost circling the tree with a visual fragment of himself. Eventually, once they both felt that they had reached their limit of remembrance, each one left a bright red tulip on top of the grave, and walked back to the house as night fell. Neither one of them could speak that night; their mouths were weighed down by sorrow and grief. As the stars began to reveal the swirls of the overlooming painting, the boy and old man looked out at them, and wondered whether they should join her up there. 

*

[pdaangsakti21]

#32

 

almost a year had passed. inside the hut there was some kind of loud conversations. one of the voice belonged to Auror.

"huh? why can't you see the blue ink? it's certainly here! see? thi---s curve, and also thi----s one!" he traced the blue lines with his index finger.

"no, i can't see it! ...huh, wait a bit. yeah they're there. what did you do?" a man in his thirties, a bit plump and sweaty, his hair was natural perm with slight brown tinge on it, his clothes gave away his merchant aura. Auror made the merchant astonished with his little trick.

 

"they were there all along, it's just a bit hard to notice because they come and go."

"ahh, certainly... your ability is to loop time within your frame, right? even so, your works are interesting. can you show me more?"

Auror showed him about 10 more paintings. the content varied, the first one was a picture of sky with some funny shaped clouds hovering about, there were some rabbits and other animals hopping and running, lonely trees swayed by gentle wind, and so on.

"quite nice ones... hmm, i'll take this, this, this... actually give me two of each category. as for the price..." the merchant took out a note, wrote some numbers and handed it to Auror.

"wow, this plenty? you sure Mr. Claus? i'm just an apprentice, mind you."

"does that really matter... people enjoy arts, not titles of the producer. so you take it or not?"

"yep, if it's fine with you it's a deal."

 

that was the first time Auror got a fairly huge demand. since 2 months ago he displayed his paintings on Tela's street, people bought some. but to actually visited by a merchant and paid handsomely for several products at once, this was the first.

 

"thank you very much" Auror sent the merchant off, replied by "i'll drop by next month, make sure to prepare some masterpieces!"

 

that was a peaceful and joyful day for Auror.

[Silentnight]

This seems like a story end to me, I'm not sure how to add on to this

[Emerald39]

#1 (new story, adapted again from one of my other novel ideas; hopefully, this goes well)

 

For whomever wishes to read this, my name is Melody. All my life, I was considered to be something special, a fragile diamond in the rough-hewn grey of this world; but I had never realised until now. I had always thought myself to be as tangential as the sweet airs of a rose, but, unlike a famous quote had said, ignorance was not bliss. 

 

Since I was born, I was always... different: I was slower than others to learn anything, except for one subject in particular; that was music. At age 3, I could discern melodies and harmonies without a single thought, and had already begun to sing, dance and compose by age 4. This was my talent, my opus, my gift of the Muses; a shining light to illuminate the dreariness of harsh reality. That is, until I began the bland-eyed mechanics of the school system. This will be the diving board for my story, as you plunge into the sorrow and isolation of a lonely girl, whom the iron light could never alienate. 

[Silentnight]

#2
It had all gone wrong from the very first day of school. As I walked around the school utterly lost to find my classroom. I walked into the class 20 minutes late. Everyone looked at me and the teacher had pointed me out to a chair. I had the seat in front of the kid who couldn't stop kicking my chair. After I asked him to stop he began whispering things into my ear. At one point I began to grow into irritation as the teacher began introducing the class schedule. As I patiently and kindly asked for him to silence himself, I got so irritated I told him to shut up. At that moment the class was quite and everyone turned to look at us.

[Emerald39]

#3

 

As expected of a teacher, he was not amused and so took direct action: he pointed to a specific desk, positioned in the corner of the derelict classroom, and told me to move over there. I politely obeyed him, and transported my gear to the desk there; the desk itself was absolutely horrendous, with three legs rusted beyond help, and several holes etched into the surface, like a Swiss cheese. My face clearly showed my disgust at it, since everyone else mocked me over this incredulously petty matter. 

 

But as the day went on, I began to drift back into a happier realm. Since I was positioned so far away, left to my own devices, I began to interweave my musical genius into the decrepit desk. I began to see the multiple holes as an incomplete melody on a stave, intermittent and without any shape or emotion; this then led to my eventual humming of these delusional dots, which occasionally got me yelled at by the teachers. There was only one teacher who truly respected my talents: the music teacher, Miss Isolde. 

[Silentnight]

Sorry I haven't been paying attention to this forum and it's been a while but I'm going to try my best.

#4

Room 407, the only place in school that I had actually loved. Everyday my class would go there, where we meant Miss Isolde for music class. She would give a lecture on basics of music and would a chance to apply what was taught to us. Well, it was more of them instead of us. After she gave the class assignment, Miss Isolde pulled me aside and gave me an individual lesson.

 

She taught me how to write music in many different ways than I knew. She help me refined my singing and dancing and even allowed me to teach my fellow students a thing or two.

This was the only place I felt respected, the only place in school in that made me feel loved. In this class, my classmates didn't ignore, sneer behind my back or mock me. They looked up to me.

This is how school was until the next school quarter came, and at that time Miss Isolde introduced something new to the class. Even with my knowledge and talent in music this was something I had not yet learned to do...

 

Play an instrument.