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Logging Started: 02/15/2001 at 1:51:52
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As you arrive, you can see Roderick hauling a big heavy chest into his room. 
 He waves.  "Hi, Juri," he says cheerfully.
"Hello, Rod," Juri says softly.  She glances at the chest.  "Unless you're
 busy, want to have that talk now?"
Gumi-Roderick replies, "Just give me a minute to settle this down, and then we
 can talk."
Juri of Avalon nods.
Gumi-Roderick says, "You can just follow me in, or I can come over to your
 room."
Juri of Avalon hesitates for a moment, then says, "Come to my room.  I'll see
 you in a minute or two."
Gumi-Roderick exclaims, "Okay!"
Gumi-Roderick vanishes into his room.
Your suite is laid out with a living room, bathroom, and bedroom.  The living
 room has a table, fireplace, and several fairly nice chairs for the table. 
 And a small shelf over the fireplace for knicknacks.
Juri of Avalon unbuckles her blade, puts it down on the table, and sits down,
 staring at her hands.
There is a knock at the door.
Juri of Avalon says, "Come in."
Roderick comes in, wiping sweat off his forehead with a handkerchief, then
 closes the door behind him and sits down at the table. [spoofed by Akemi]
Juri of Avalon nods towards an empty chair across from her.  "Have a seat, Rod."
Gumi-Roderick sits down in the chair.
"Well," says Juri.  She drums her fingers on her knee for a moment, then sighs.
 "I'm bad at this.  Sorry."
Roderick . o O (Bad feeling) 
Gumi-Roderick nods, looking worried now.  "Go on."
Gumi-Roderick smiles faintly.  "I won't pretend that I know you as well as I
 hope I might, or that I'm sure this will be a love for the ages, because I've
 thought that before and the only thing of the ages that came from that was an
 impressive humiliation.  But to see you move, to fight by your side, to watch
 your strength and your gentleness..."
He shakes his head.  "You are a woman in the strength of her maturity, who age
 has not yet crushed, with a steel in you which awes me.  You remain a mystery
 to me in many ways, but it's a mystery that draws me in to learn more.  You're
 not like any other woman I've met, although from what Uncle Corwin says of
 Deidre..."
He continues, "But I digress too easily sometimes.  I want to be with you, to
 accompany you on your journeys, to  fight by your side, and to come to really
 know you."
"When I first met you, I noticed your loveliness, and usually, that's been
 enough for me."
He shakes his head.  "But you're not so shallow as all the others.  I've made
 too many choices just because some woman was lovely...and sometimes they left
 me because I was just something lovely to them."
Juri of Avalon's expression softens as Roderick speaks.  When he finishes, she
 nods and licks her lips.  "Well," she says, "you've been open and honest with
 me about your feelings.  I haven't gotten that enough in my life, nor have I
 given it."
Juri of Avalon says, "So I guess it's only fair that I be the same to you."
Gumi-Roderick nods.
Juri of Avalon folds her hands and looks up at the ceiling.  "I've had one
 person in my life that I ever thought I could love until the end of time. 
 There may have been another one, but... things were never right between us.  I
 was very young when it happened; I think you can only feel that you could love
 someone forever when you're young."
He nods.  "Especially when forever is much longer for us, than for most people.
Juri of Avalon nods.  "Secondly... this is something that I don't often talk
 about openly, even though I suppose by now that my family and other people
 close to me all know it."
Roderick nods. 
Juri of Avalon says, "I gave up a long time ago on the idea that I was one
 thing, or another thing, when it came to love.  Or to sex.  It's silly, to fit
 yourself into a shell like that when you're going to live forever."
Juri of Avalon says, "But despite that, most of my affairs, most of the people
 I've loved in a romantic way, even a little, have been other women."
Gumi-Roderick nods again.
Juri of Avalon smiles.  "You probably already guessed this from Urd.  Most of
 that was just to try and get her to leave Shizumaru and his girlfriend in
 peace, or at least reconsider, but... well, she is very lovely."
Gumi-Roderick nods.  "It was not easy for me to watch.  It was really that
 moment when I fully realized what I was feeling about you.  It's been years
 since I last felt so jealous."
Juri of Avalon finally tilts her head down to look into his eyes.  "Yes.  I
 remember that you didn't look very happy.  That was... when I realized that
 maybe it wasn't all just casual flirtation.  I've known a lot of that from
 men.  Not much real love."
Gumi-Roderick says, "My lady, I could never follow a woman across
 three...four...however many universes we've been in for casual flirtation.  "
Juri of Avalon smiles.  "Well, you didn't really have much choice; nor did I. 
 But point taken."
Gumi-Roderick laughs a little.  "We have been rather tossed hither and fro by
 destiny since the moment we met."
Juri of Avalon smiles.  "Perhaps there's some meaning in it, then."  She looks
 away from him suddenly, losing her smile.  "As you know, you're an exact match
 physically for my nephew, Horatio, the son of Tess and Bleys in my universe."
He nods.  "Yes, I'd be curious to meet him some day."
Juri of Avalon smiles.  "I'm not sure how you two would get along.  You are, at
 the same time, very different and very alike."  Pause.  "Horatio always had
 something of a crush on me.  Cute, in a schoolboy way.  I never really thought
 it was anything serious; I enjoyed teasing him, to be honest."
He nods, and listens quietly, looking more relaxed now.
"But now I'm worried that he might have been more serious than I thought.  We
 were always close, but... I worry now that I might have hurt him."  She looks
 away.  "Did you ever read any of the books that Captain Demetrius had in his
 library?  The histories of my family, I mean."
Gumi-Roderick looks faintly embarrassed.  "I started to read one, and then I
 got distracted when I spotted a book I'd never finished back in Amber because
 Otho brought it to life and sent it to kill Fluffy, who then blamed me because
 the book had my scent on it, and...well...I only got around to reading about
 some of the early history of your family.  Up to around when you were born, I
 think."
Juri of Avalon nods.  "Then..."  She hesitates for a long time.  "In my
 universe, I'm known as Juri the Kinslayer.  I think I've mentioned the Brand
 of my universe to you before, how I killed him at the Battle of the Fount. 
 What I may not have told you is that I was the one who freed him from the
 Abyss in the first place."
He says, "I heard that name in your Avalon, Juri the Kinslayer.  But I don't
 know how it came about."  His voice is more serious, maybe a little sombre
 now.  "I've shed the blood of my kin, but never reached the point of having to
 kill any of them.  What happened?"
Juri of Avalon looks down at her lap and seems to shrink in upon herself a
 little, like a flower drawing in its petals.  "It's a very long story," she
 says eventually.  "It's bound up in the entirety of my life, from when I was a
 very young girl until just a little while ago.  I'd like to tell it to you in
 full some day.  Maybe write it down.  My version of everything that happened."
Juri of Avalon says, "But in short, Brand reached out from the Abyss and got
 inside my head.  He manipulated me for his own purposes, both through
 controlling my perceptions and through the influence of his son, Tomas.  But
 he was only able to do those things because I was weak and foolish, and
 confident in my own ability to always see what was right, and act righteously."
Juri of Avalon says, "In the end, to free Brand, I had to fight a duel.  I
 believed that I would be freeing my own father from the Abyss by doing so."
Gumi-Roderick reaches across the table to take your hand, then stops with his
 hand extended, obviously not sure if you would want a touch.
Juri of Avalon reaches out quickly and takes Roderick's hand, clinging to it
 tightly.
Gumi-Roderick holds her hand firmly, giving a squeeze as he listens.
Juri of Avalon says, "My sister, Darako, tried to stop me from ascending to the
 arena.  We were in the middle of a civil war at the time, and she'd turned
 double agent to help us win, pretending to assassinate my sister Tess,
 constructing a very elaborate lie to convince even most of the family."
Gumi-Roderick nods.  "The one who looked like Corrine?"
"Yes.  It was very easy for her, because she was always the black sheep of the
 family.  A foul-mouthed, foul-tempered, mean little punk.  We hated each
 other."  Juri's eyes are distant.  "Absolutely hated each other.  We were
 always in conflict, from the day I came back from Ohtori and met her for the
 first time."
Juri of Avalon says, "At first, she tried to convince me through words... but I
 was so absorbed in myself and my sense of my own righteousness, and so
 mistrustful of her... that those couldn't possibly work."
Juri of Avalon says, "So we fought, and Tomas froze her for an instant with his
 spikard, and I stabbed her through the heart.  Killed my little sister."
Juri of Avalon closes her eyes and takes a deep, shuddering breath.
Gumi-Roderick squeezes your hand tightly, opens his mouth, then shuts it.  Then
 he opens it again and closes it again.  On try three, he manages to say, "When
 you met Corrine...it must have been awful.  To see her face looking at you. 
 To think about...everything."
Juri of Avalon nods and bows her head, casting her face into shadow, or
 possibly trying to hide tears.  "It wasn't as bad as it could have been. 
 After it happened, after I brought her body home and got the whole story...
 her ghost visited me.  We talked.  Got a lot out into the open that we
 couldn't when she was alive.  She wasn't much like I remembered her, and I'm
 quite sure the Pattern sanitized her ghost in order to try and keep me from
 going insane.  Brand was loose, and it needed its defenders badly, and shortly
 before I talked to Darako's ghost, I'd had my sword out, ready to fall upon
 it, and had only held back by thinking that I needed to at least kill Brand
 first."
Juri of Avalon says, "But talking to Dar, even to that... censored parody of
 her, helped."
He nods.  "How long ago was this...by the time you've lived, anyway?"
Juri of Avalon says, "A few months ago, now.  Forty years, when we were in my
 universe.  It's... I had no one I could talk to about it any more.  For
 everyone who could understand, it was a distant thing.  It was a part of the
 past.  An old wound, scarred; it wouldn't disappear, but it didn't hurt so
 much.  But for me..."
Juri of Avalon says, "I can still remember everything.  What it felt like when
 the blade went through her body.  What it felt like to wrap her in cerements
 so I could bring her home.  But... everyone else... it was forty years ago."
His eyes widen in shock.  "Only a few months...Oh, Juri..."
Juri of Avalon nods.  "So much has happened that these days, most of the time,
 it seems very distant to me... but then, if I stop to think about it, like I
 am now... and it just goes through me like a spear, and it hurts so much that
 I can't even cry.  I couldn't after Dar died, either; all I could think about
 was that I didn't deserve to cry, because what murderer cries for their
 victim?"
Juri of Avalon takes another shuddering breath.  A few tears fall from her eyes
 and hit the tabletop to lie there, glistening.
Gumi-Roderick holds out his other hand, starts to speak, stops, then says
 softly, "I've never had the chance to make such a mistake, but I know that if
 I had been in the same situation with Otho as you were with Darako, standing
 at the Abyss, believing her a traitor, I'd have killed him faster and harder
 than you would have with Darako under any circumstance."
Gumi-Roderick says, "He just thinks he can do anything...anything at all, and
 the worst part of it is that he can.  Because his father was the savior of the
 universe, and my father betrayed Amber to plot with Chaos and my uncle tried
 to destroy the universe. "
He shudders.  "I spent my childhood with half my relatives watching me and my
 father and my mother to see if we'd snap and try to destroy everything."
Juri of Avalon nods and takes Roderick's other hand in her other one.  Her head
 is hanging low, hair obscuring her face.  "I tell myself that sometimes," she
 murmurs.  "But it doesn't do me any good.  Whatever Darako did, all the
 reasons I was there were because I was so stupid and so self-righteous, and
 because I was dumb enough to trust some people too much, and others not
 enough.  And it doesn't end there; I killed my brother Venir, too.  He was one
 I duelled against; I didn't know it was him when we fought.  Or perhaps I did,
 but didn't let myself realize it.  But if I'd just been smarter, if I'd been
 better... Dar wouldn't have died.  Venir wouldn't have died.  And Brand
 wouldn't have gotten free."
Juri of Avalon squeezes his hands.  "I can imagine how hard that must have
 been."
"I still remember when Otho told me there was a crossbow bolt with my name on
 it, for if it was ever needed.  And showed it to me."  He shudders, and his
 eyes close.
"I had to be perfect.  Utterly, and completely perfect.  Not to get mad, not to
 show any irritation. Not to give any hint that I might even vaguely
 contemplate things like revenge.  But of course, no one can be that perfect. 
 And if I slipped..."  He shudders again.  "While Otho runs wild, sending
 molemen after people and drugging people's girlfriends and..."
Juri of Avalon hesitates, then draws forward in her chair, raising Roderick's
 hands to her lips and kissing his fingers gently.  "Shh," she says.  "I've
 found... I've found that a lot of the time, so much of that is just in your
 head."
Juri of Avalon says, "When I fell in love with Shiori, I couldn't say anything
 to her.  I was so frightened of what she would think, of what other people
 would think.  So I cut myself off from the world and tried to live as though I
 were an island..."
He stares up at you looking dismal, then smiles weakly, though his eyes gilsten
 with moisture, and nods.
Juri of Avalon says, "I was cold on the outside.  An ice maiden.  But inside...
 I was hurting so much that I don't know why I didn't scream out loud some
 days."
Juri of Avalon squeezes his hands again.  "But then, when it came out... no one
 cared.  None of the people who really mattered to me cared at all."
Juri of Avalon says, "And Shiori... she didn't love me back.  I'm not sure if
 _she_ ever knew, by the end.  But we became friends, and then, slowly, we
 drifted apart... and I never stopped loving her, but..."
Juri of Avalon says, "You know how sometimes when a soldier gets shot, it's
 safer to leave the bullet in rather than try to take it out?  That's what
 Shiori was like for me."
Roderick nods.  "Yes." 
Juri of Avalon says, "And then... then there's you.  That's what this is all
 leading up to."
Juri of Avalon asks, "You've heard my story now.  Why I'm called the Kinslayer.
 I've opened my heart to you as I've only done to a few people in my entire
 life.  And... how do you feel now?"
Gumi-Roderick remains silent a few seconds, gathering his thoughts.  "I tried
 to think of something grandly eloquent to say, like I know Father would, but I
 can't."  He smiles wryly.  "But speaking with grace often means just
 delivering a speech.  Even your wounds are beautiful to me."
He continues, "Neither of us is perfect, and I have lived too long to look at
 others and pretend to myself that I would never make such a mistake, that I
 know I would never have done the same.  I haven't lived through anything quite
 as...anything like that.  But none the less, I love you.  And I will follow
 you to the Abyss and fight a thousand duels if need be, and jump in after you
 if you fall."
Juri of Avalon smiles.  "All right.  Then, shall I tell you how I feel?"
"I do not know if I can give you what you need.  I can't pretend to even be
 sure what you need.  But I will give it and more."
He nods.  "Please tell me, Juri."
Juri of Avalon leans forward, across the table, drawing him towards her by the
 hands, and kisses him on the lips.

Zankuro> Mercutio says, "Congratulations, Alan."
Zankuro> Mercutio says, "You've just turned Horatio evil. I hope you're happy."
Zankuro> Mercutio puts on 'Night Train to Lorca,' and broods.

You can feel the tension flow out of him at the brush of your lips and see the
 change in his stance as the fear that still haunted him fades away.
Juri of Avalon draws back and squeezes his hands.

Zankuro> Funk Soul Brother laughs.

Juri of Avalon says, "I'm not sure how I feel about you, Rod.  I'm not good
 with feelings.  But... I like you.  A lot.  You have a lot of wonderful
 qualities aside from your superb taste in women to fall in love with."  She
 smiles at him gently and squeezes his hands again.  "There are a lot of
 different kinds of love.  I'm not sure if I'm capable of some grand passion
 any more.  But there are, as I said, so many different kinds of love, and I
 think I could love you.  I think you'd be good for me, and I'd be good for
 you."

Zankuro> Funk Soul Brother decides to log this session, 'cos it's just so sweet.

Juri of Avalon asks, "I'm not sure that I can burn for anyone any more, not
 like a bonfire or a torch, nor like a stroke of lightning... but I think I
 could manage a steady heat, for a long time.  Like a coal.  I'd keep you warm
 as best I could.  Would that be enough?"

Zankuro> Mercutio grumbles and plans the various ways Horatio can go mad.
Zankuro> Funk Soul Brother says, "...okay, Alan, there is such a thing as
 running a metaphor into the ground."
Zankuro> Damask V2.0 says, "Wait until she gets out the pictures of Shiori and
 asks him how good his shapeshifting is.  :)"
Zankuro> Funk Soul Brother o.o;;
Zankuro> Mercutio says, "The Brand is passe now, and the Jurt is just so
 PREDICTABLE. Perhaps the Rimmer."
Zankuro> Damask V2.0 says, "You could just congratulate her, and then steal
 Roderick's skin and take his place.  :)"
Zankuro> Mercutio says, "The Tess would be neat and generational,  but I'm not
 sure he can pull that off."
Zankuro> Mercutio says, "Maybe the Dara."
Zankuro> Damask V2.0 says, "Or kidnap their first child and raise it as your
 own with a Shadow Juri sought out to be in love with you.  :)"
Zankuro> Chris says, "Dara isn't insane."
Zankuro> Mercutio says, "Damasks grandmother Dara."
Zankuro> Chris says, "She wasn't mad."

He smiles at you and the moisture in his eyes forms two tears which stream
 away, leaving his eyes clear.  "The heat of passion burns hot, but it soon
 consumes its fuel and goes out.  But love which lasts is that steady heat of
 which you speak.  I have had much passion, but little love like you offer.  I
 accept your offer, my lady fair."  And then he raises one of your hands and
 kisses it."
Juri of Avalon strokes his hair with her other hand, very gently.  "Then let's
 just see where it goes, shall we?" she says softly, rising out her seat and
 drawing him up by the hand.

Zankuro> Mercutio whimpers. "Stupid Roderick. Thinks he's so big. "
Zankuro> Damask V2.0 says, "Fortunately, Andrew, John is a card-carrying member
 of the Extended Metaphor Club, as am I.  :)"
Zankuro> Funk Soul Brother says, "Yeah. o.o"
Zankuro> Funk Soul Brother says, "It's vaguely painful."
Zankuro> Chris summons a 16 pt. damage cinderblock for Horatio.
Zankuro> Damask V2.0 says, "Well, Juri's a big cliched romantic softie at
 heart.  She's dreamed of being able to make speeches like this for centuries. 
 :)"

He rises with you, and smiles brightly.  "Indeed.  If this be love, let us make
 the most of it."  He laughs.  "With apologies to the Bard."
Juri of Avalon hooks her thumb back towards the bedroom.  "Want to see how much
 heat we can generate until we have to go to the planning meeting?" she asks
 coquettishly, winking.

Zankuro> Mercutio says, "I just hope I get the oppurtunity to play Horatio
 watching them from the Shadows and saying things like. "I will crush him. Like
 a little bug. and he will never know. <insane giggle> Muahaha.""

He smiles broadly, entwining his arm around yours.  "Well, the planning is in
 the morning, and the whole night stretches before us...so, yes, I think it's
 time to see if we can set this town on fire."
Juri of Avalon draws him towards the bedroom.
He pauses at the door.  "I only ask...just don't ask me to make train noises." 
 He shakes his head.  "Don't ask why, either.  Please."
"Mmm."  Juri smiles and kisses him.  "Will you at least wear an engineer's cap?
 They turn me on."
He flicks his fingers and now he holds one, putting it on.  "As it pleases
 thee, my lady."

Zankuro> Metatron says, "So, did I break you, Merc? :"
Zankuro> Mercutio says, "mostly. ;.;"

"You can be... hmm..."  She kisses him again, pushing open the door to the
 bedroom with the side of her foot.  "You can be the young engineer applying
 for your first engine-driving job.  I can be the older woman who owns the
 company and takes advantage of your innocence.  How does that sound?"

Zankuro> Chris says, "It was amusing."
Zankuro> Chris says, "My ... kinky Juri."
Zankuro> Funk Soul Brother stares.
Zankuro> Mercutio says, "And now it's taken a left turn into weird."
Zankuro> Squidstealer DaR laughs and laughs and laughs.
Zankuro> Chris says, "I never knew she was into roleplaying."
Zankuro> Funk Soul Brother feels his mind start to break.
Zankuro> Mercutio says, "If they come back to Avalon with a kid they've named
 'Horatio'......"

He grins.  "Sounds fun to me, although I'd need to conjure us a proper desk for
 us to make out on top of.  Shall I?"

Zankuro> Metatron says, "Ahh yes, the Children.... :)"

Hiko the Firechilde OOCLY says,  "I can't believe you're letting this
 continue.... I get black bars...."

"Of course."  Juri nibbles on his ear and half-drags him into the bedroom by
 the lapels.  "How badly do you want this job, Mr. Roderick?" she growls.

Gideon OOCly hands Hiko some popcorn. "Just enjoy the show."
Gumi-Roderick says, "OOC We can't break Merc with what YOU do, Fox :)"
Gabrielle OOCly twitches repeatedly.
Hiko the Firechilde OOCly  sighs...
Zankuro> Mercutio says, "What did I ever do to you, John? ;.;"

And the door closes as he gets pulled in and his foot snags it.  "Well, I've
 always been ambitious to get to the top of my field..."
"Mmm.  Well, in this job, you'll get to be on top of a lot of things."  Juri
 begins undoing the buttons of his shirt.  "If you'll just come over to my desk
 here..."

Zankuro> The Fount flares at rodm's arrival.
Zankuro> Funk Soul Brother feels faintly horrified.

And the camera fades out before Merc is driven to destroy Rochester in Nuclear
 Fire. :)

Zankuro> Damask V2.0 says, "Yeah, I know.  I need a male to name 'Horatio'
 anyway.  :)"
Gumi-Roderick says, "OOC And before it gets way too late for this whiteboy."
Shizumaru OOCly says, "Whew."
                   ROCHESTER RAIN OF GLAAAAAAAAASSSSSS!!!!!
Juri of Avalon says, "G'night, John.  Good session.  :)"
Zankuro> Damask V2.0 writes the Juri/Roderick lemon, detailing their entire
 eight-hour orgy, then sends it to Merc to drive him mad.
Zankuro> Damask V2.0 says, "Well, he could just replace every use of 'Roderick'
 with 'Horatio', and thereby save himself.  :)"
Zankuro> Mercutio asks, "Somehwere out there, Horatio is lying on the throne
 room floor, foaming and twitching with unfocused eyes, while meredith just
 stares and wonders WTF?"
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Logging Stopped: 02/15/2001 at 2:35:38
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