Application for Mordichai Black: Julie Kenner's Aphrodite series

[shifter_mordi]

Being unexpectedly transported to an unfamiliar castle wasn't the most inconvenient thing that had ever happened to Mordi, but it was going to put a crimp in his afternoon plans

Comments

[superfraternal]

This was Hogwarts.

And the man did say he was a shapeshifter. Right there, under question 5D on the application.

So why did Simon feel so completely taken aback? It was the cape, he told himself. A doppelganger in a nice button-down vest would have been more his speed. A cape over a business suit? So not on.

Yes, it was definitely the cape that brought on this sense of profound wtf.

He offered a polite smile. "Is a pyrokinetic shapeshifter much different from the standard garden-variety shapeshifter? Other than having the power of pyrokinesis." Are you wearing that shape on purpose or do you ordinarily look like a fashion-backward iteration of me? he purposely did not say. It took effort -- Simon was one for blurting out things at inopportune moments -- but he managed.

[shifter_mordi]

Mordi hadn't been paying much attention to who had come in until he turned an are you stupid? look to Simon. At that moment they looked very much like twins, down to the identical expressions of wtf?

"Is this some kind of joke?" he asked. "Don't tell me this whole castle thing is some sort of an elaborate prank."

[superfraternal]

"I think the verdict is still out," said Simon, a momentary wryness battling the expression of wtf? with ultimate lack of success.

Shapeshifter -- maybe taking on the appearance of whomever he saw? A kind of camouflage? Maybe the man wasn't even a human shapeshifter (was that an oxymoron?) but some sort of alien being. Or maybe it was, well, an elaborate prank.

He didn't know what to think, or how to feel about it, really. "We don't know the ultimate nature of the castle. People here tend to do best adopting a pragmatic and short-range view. Um ... do you look like this often, or only for the day?"

[shifter_mordi]

Meanwhile, Mordi was having similar thoughts about Simon, wondering if his power was mimicry of some sort. "I look like this every day," he said. Actually, he was surprised that he hadn't been recognized, being somewhat notorious and all.

"Look, you've done an excellent job of whatever it is you're trying to do. You can go back to your own face now."

[omg_sunflora]

"What's a pyrokinetic?" Sunflora said that last word slowly, as it was a confusing one.

And yeah, Sunflora would not be pleased with the answer. Which is why the mun made her ask it.

[shifter_mordi]

In response, Mordi held up his hand. A ball of flames appeared in his palm. "I can summon fire."

[omg_sunflora]

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!" Sunflora shrieked, jumping backwards. "I DON'T WANNA BE ON FIRE!"

[shifter_mordi]

"You're not going to be on fire," he said, rolling his eyes. The fire went out without even a puff of smoke. "All gone, see?"

He didn't even blink at the fact that he was talking to a plant.

[vislor_turlough]

"Well, you better not set anything outside on fire if you value your limbs." Turlough said, glaring from the doorway.

[shifter_mordi]

"Trust me, wanton vandalism does not rate very high on my list of things to do," he said dryly. "Who's threatening to take my limbs off?"

[vislor_turlough]

"I am. I'm still authorized to punish troublemakers." Whether Hagrid really did give him the authority to do so of if Turlough's bullshitting, who can say?

[shifter_mordi]

"Too bad there aren't any in this room." Unless this man was the type of person who would run around starting fires and blame them on him, which would just be ducky.

[soggynotecards]

"Mortals?" Demyx looked a bit confused at this, and tried to figure out if this was any god he knew of. Shapeshifting didn't rule out many. Pyrokinesis... Hephaestus or Apollo, maybe? But Apollo didn't dress in black and Hephaestus never could get rid of that limp. "You're a god? Or just someone weird?"

[shifter_mordi]

Mordi was thrown for a loop, because anyone he would have expected to talk to would have known what a mortal was, that he wasn't a god, and certainly not weird by Protector standards.

Unless this man was a mortal himself, and not one of the ones employed by the Mortal Liaison Office. In which case, shit.

"Weird," he said, trying to do some damage control. "Just weird, that's all."

[soggynotecards]

"I'm just trying to figure this out, 'cause you certainly don't look like Hephaestus or Apollo and I don't know what other gods would be pyrokinetic."

[shifter_mordi]

"I'm not a god." That, at least, was true. "It was all a joke. Really."

[chance_silvey]

Chance didn't get so far as to read the application. She saw Simon, in the sorting room, wearing a flowing cape and binoculars.

"What the fuck? Have you finally had a psychotic break?"

Immediately she regretted saying this to him. However she might feel about him in general, once upon a time Simon Tam had been very good to her when she'd undergone some mental trauma herself. Not that he remembered that, or anything, but it still mattered to her.

[shifter_mordi]

"Um. Yes."

Mordi had now been clued in to the fact that the Council had nothing to do with this, and had written sensitive information on a form that had conveniently magically replicated itself for everyone to read. It was by no means as bad as some of the incidents he'd been in (fireballs at SeaWorld, anyone?) but he needed to cover it up. If his dignity had to be sacrificed, so be it.

"I'm insane. That stuff on the form is all made up. Pay no attention to it. Or me."

[chance_silvey]

For a second it looked like Chance was about to do just that -- pay no attention: turn around and leave. She did turn around

[shifter_mordi]

He'd completely forgotten that he was wearing his favorite propulsion cloak. Since flying unassisted was not one of his powers, the propulsion/invisibility cloak made spying unseen from high locations that much easier. Since he wasn't about to soar through the New York skyline anytime soon, he looked like a loon with it on.

Mordi took the cloak off and started folding it up. "That's what it looks like, doesn't it? As a matter of fact, I was birdwatching, and I was cold." Gods, that sounded stupid. "I'm fine, really. You can go."