"Boo."

A palm clasped itself over her shoulder. She let out a slight gasp, caught off guard. The darkness still enveloped the room, but....a different feeling seemed to have fallen, as soon as the hand fell upon her. At first, she tensed up....but slowly, an overwhelming calm began to present itself.

"Don't fear me. Do not shy away, Ally-cat. I mean you no harm."

Lightning crackled through an opening in the window, and the curtains flew apart... she shuddered. But as quickly as this tiny sliver of discomfort came upon her...it passed.

"I know how you felt about him... 'raYne'. You hated him with every last fiber of your being, but 'Believe' me....."

He slowly turned her around, gently, allowing her to gaze upon the figure that laid itself before her....








"....BELIEVE me." He shook his head softly, "Nathaniel may deny it, many here may be unable to see it. But I am not him. For I, too, despised 'The Storm'..."

He glanced down upon the wooden floor, breathing in heavily, before slowly letting it out.... "You see, I have been trapped within that body, for far, far too long...." He lifted his gaze, meeting hers. "2004. 2005. 2006. Years I cherish, years I remember oh so well. The years I, such as yourself, such as you have here....The years I reigned."

He rubbed at the back of his neck, glancing upon the floor....before looking up toward her, taking in her prescence. A prescence he thought, mere months ago, that he would never have the pleasure of seeing again.

"Vlad, The Dhampir. Javex, the Dragon. Leary Garcia, the Hardcore Hippie from Hell. Steven Kult, Chris Rayvon, The Drama. Names that may mean little or nothing to you, but names that have etched their way into my mind. Where they shall remain for an eternity. I ran with Gods. I made a name that MEANT something, people heard the name 'Reeve Gordon'?" A glint shone in his eyes, as if the memories flashed before them....he smiled. "People heard the name 'Reeve Gordon', and they knew a Show was about to begin."

He placed a hand upon the headboard of a nearby oakwood chair, glancing out into the night....reminiscing, as he spoke aloud.

"They didn't want my head on a stick....they wanted me in the bright lights, with something on the line. Something to prove, something to FIGHT for. Because they knew, when I was in the ring, running on a full-tank..." He then turned his eyes back toward The Hellfyr. "They knew....it was go-time." He then leaned in closer to Callaway. ".....the very same feeling you, my dear pussy cat, the very same...." He leaned in even closer, tilting his head to the side, his breath soft against her skin, "....feeling. The feeling I know, that you know all too well. Alex, I have not forgotten what Mystica taught you. Quite the contrary. You see, I have the memories of 'The Storm' lodged deep within my mind, and I have learned from each lesson."

The sound of thunder shook the silence, booming in the distance. Lightning split the sky, and for a mere moment, the darkness was illuminated. A light glistened in his eyes, as well as hers.

"Loyalty. Self-sacrifice. True, unbridled, unrequited love. Love that would lead a man to lay himself before a 'man of God', and accept her fate. Your scars,"....he glanced down at her hand, slowly taking it into his. At first, she fought it, but his gentle nature, the way he handled her, delicately....It caught her by surprise. After everything, the suffering he'd felt, he seemingly held no grudge. Still, her distaste remained, and was apparent to him. But she listened. "....scars. They remain. I may not have traveled through distant galaxies, I may not have traversed through time, but I stood in the flames of hell." Taking her hand, he gazed into her eyes...."I stood within the pit, I watched the flames cascade over me. I have seen things no man, from any time or any universe, has seen.

"In the flames....with your blade...I was reborn. So I do not come to make an apology. I come....to give you my thanks. When you gaze, long, into an abyss...."


"...the abyss also gazes into you. I tried to fight it. I TRIED to fight the hate, the darkness....but the more I fought, the more I realized. That is who I am. I gave in, and I became what I always was. I became what I was always meant to be." Their eyesight met for a handful of seconds, a silence overtaking the room. A deafening silence, but the look in his eyes spoke volumes. He slowly made his way toward the window, and stood upon the sill. He crossed one leg over the other, and looked into her eyes. She rested upon the oakwood chair, and he spoke.

"I also recall what Zakariah taught you. At least, one of his lessons....we cannot betray ourselves, our TRUE selves, in the name of another. We cannot forsake what makes us tick for someone that is blind to The Truth. They dismiss us, they write us off, they cast their doubts. They see a changed person, and they make their claims, for they.....THEY. Are the ones with the problem."

With these words, 'Reeve' held out the palm of his hand. And he stared deeply into the eyes of Alex.....a memory planted itself into her mind. The words of a man she loved filled her psyche....

supernova Said:"You know I didn't think I changed her so much, just by simply dating her, but I guess I did. It's weird how she'd change so easily. Someone who's supposed to be all powerful and driven by the power of the moon. I mean it makes you wonder if the person she's claimed she's changing into, is even her true self... Someone who can be molded and manipulated so easily, like what was claimed to have happened... what's to say that's not happening again?

"Maybe this new persona, is just something Zak is molding her into. There's no proof otherwise. Sure, she could say that's not true, but those are just her words, which seem rather hollow and meaningless after she admits she can be corrupted and changed so easily. She certainly had me fooled though. I thought who she was when I was dating her, was her true personality and it turns out, she was just that way because apparently, I made her that way.

"Real funny stuff. Real eye opening, funny stuff."

With that final line, he lowered his hand, and she awoke.



And the landscape had changed. As had the figure that stood before her.




"So, I ask of you, Ally Callaway. Do you still believe me to be the same? Do you still believe me to be the person you despised?..."


He slowly held his hand out, and within it appeared a rose. A black rose, with glistening purple buds. He gently held it toward Alex...


"....or are you ready to take a chance on a Showman? And to possibly find yourself pleasantly surprised? I realize I am not Azrael, but I do not wish to be. I am now what I always was within. I am Reeve, Alexandra, Gordon. And that is who I shall remain. I also realize I do not know enough about you. But I am willing to learn.....are you willing to do the same?"


He looked into her beautiful, blue eyes. As blue as a vast, sparkling ocean. Looking into her eyes, to him, was as amazing a sight as standing upon a beach, gazing out into the wild blue yonder... They stood on the edge of a window. The window of a temple, crafted from rich stone. He smiled...and waited.


--ooc: if you care to...continue. and if you do so, i will cut down my replies from here on out. thank you, ally. and have a beautiful day--