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marble, bleached as it was of all colour 'neath the moon's light. To some, the face holds much beauty, to others, it is cold, to it's owner, it's only merit is that it is hers alone...The chaos of thought and emotion within, masked by the air of stillness and calm without... Slowly, a pale, delicate hand reaches forth to lift the latch and push open the heavy, iron-bound oaken door, allowing the dim light, and buzzing voices to intrude briefly on the night... In the space of a breath, the woman dissapears within, and the door once again holds the night at bay. In silence, she makes her way to her shadowed corner, carved as it is from the center of a wall, more a niche, a nook, really, but there never the less, and always reserved for her... With a small part of her consciouness, she responds automatically to the queries and greeting directed her way by the faceless voices inhabiting the room. Her gaze shifts from being to being, seeking faces where there are none, responding in her quiet voice, hello...no, i'm quite alright... meaningless, automatic responses to meaningless questions... Starving wraiths, they are", she thinks in the chaos of her mind"looking to feed off the pain in my soul... hummmmm... i think not tonight..." Quietly, she gathers her robes about her, and takes her customary seat on the cold marble floor. Gathering her thoughts and emotions around her , she organizes them lilke a shield... yes, tonight her efforts are sucessful... tonight, her emotions will not betray her weakness, as they have so often in the past done... It is here, in this dark, crowded room, that she feels most comfortable... where others like her gather, who have been feared and shunned for their "differentness", their "apartness" from the
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