Scene #9722: The Great MatildaAAGGGH DANGIT MATILDA!!

Owner	Pose
Regulus	Getting rid of what Regulus dubbed the 'fear rocks' has been an obnoxious and emotionally draining affair. Regulus and Riku have spent time cleaning out the space but Regulus has asked for another big push to try and clear out the rest. They're looking for very small quartz rocks. "Didn't even know she could do this..." Regulus complains to the world as she has used an extension cord leading out from the suitcase with a large vacuum cleaner in one hand and a rake in the other hand. "Knew she was up to ''something'' but wasn't expecting an arcane skill like this." "Now I figured I'd been getting kind of used to having my fears shoved in my face over and over, but... well, thanks for the help." Regulus exhales, lamenting a little that she chose to be a rebellious revolutionary type rather than someone who just had to go and have nice dinners with politicians or something to move things around. But alas, the latter method involves paperwork and stomaching bureaucrats and that was never in the #0 to #21 cards for her so there's not much to do for it but keep on keeping on Speaking of Garments, Regulus is presently wearing a white durag on her head, a sleeveless button down grey and white striped shirt with only the top two buttons buttoned and the rest of the shirt untucked. Below that she's wearing jeans (with a belt) that have dark blue star patterns cut into them. She's wearing headphones around her neck are connected to the phone in her backpocket and the music instrumental Surfing with the Alien (Joe Satriani) is blazing out of her headphones, just loud enough to overpower the sound of the vacuum cleaner when she experimentally turns it on and the VWOOOOOOM commences. "Okay so if you see any quartz, could be real small, I'd like you to use either a rake or other object to push it somewhere it can sit so the vacuum cleaner can suck it out into the bag! We gotta get 'em all!"
Riku Asakura	Riku was here today to help out, as he had been for a while. It'd been hard to find what they had so far, but now it's crazy that there were still any left. It sucks because they had been very thorough in checking places for those damned rocks. Riku had brought more rakes and shovels to help them check everywhere for them. Also today, Riku was wearing a letterman jacket without any letters on it. It was blue in the chest and back with white sleeves. This was sitting over a light orange shirt and jeans that seemed to fit the style. He doesn't wear a cap because his hair is fairly short, so he doesn't need to worry about it getting in his face. "Yeah, and watch how close you get to the quartz. The ranges on them can vary. It's not a fun activity, I admit... especially with all of the foliage here." It's not like they could get rid of it, because that would probably upset Druvis quite a bit, but also potentially make their defenses weaker.
Holly Asturias	"Didn't even know she could do this..." "I was aware she could do illusions, but to use fears in such a way... it isn't possible for her to have seen the thing these horrible little rocks show me, and so I wonder... if she's used her divination to gleam it all ahead of time, or if these awful crystals can read one's mind straight up." It is still the same, days later. Holly holds one of the crystals up, between two fingers; she feels the icy breath of an immense being behind her, shadowed and cloaked and crawling, a golden skeletal hand covering its face like a mask. She takes a deep breath. Holly, dressed as she ever is, fancy dress and enough eyeshadow to kill a person, avoids ever looking at the empty space behind her, tossing the crystal into the pile that's being swept together. She stops holding her breath, once she does. "Now I figured I'd been getting kind of used to having my fears shoved in my face over and over," "It is my first time. Or, unnaturally, it is anyway. One can hardly blame nightmares for being nightmares, especially after a day of work." Golden blood splatters out of her hands, forming into a broom in her hands. There's a bit of glimmer, a bit ahead, and she approaches and carefully sweeps the infernal thing away and towards the pile. "Surely there must be a limit to how many she could carry? Or are there arcane skills for inventory space, like the Formae we use to store objects in our blood?" As evidenced by the broom.
Odette Raskins	"I thought Miss Matilda just did readings and fortunes, not... That. What does this even count as?" Odette complains as she sticks a broom handle between a wall and a desk, swatting at a stone to dislodge it from its hiding place. Like Regulus and Riku, Odette too is dressed a bit more casually today, but only slightly. She's still wearing her usual Company-blue EMT jacket, but over a tank top and jeans instead of her usual uniform jumpskirt. To alleviate some of those fears from hitting as hard as they did last time, she's also got metal wristbands on both arms along with a regulation headset on her head. One ear is listening to a livestream about fashion, and the other provides some relaxing music from a show she hasn't watched yet. "I-it can't be a prediction, right? That'd be too-" Seeing another vision of death and failure before her, the EMT fights off a shiver before snapping the front of the broom backwards with her wrist, flicking the stone out into the open and jumping back so she doesn't accidentally touch it. "... It'd suck if all of those were really going to happen." She finishes that thought sighing lightly before holding a hand up to signal Regulus. "Got one over here! This one's got a pretty good range to it. I-I mean, not good-for-us good, but quality-and-strength good." She warns, then furrows her brow at Holly's questions about Matilda's inventory space. "That's... A good point. If she can make these out of nothing, then we could be digging for weeks and not get them all out. But... No, there has to be a limit. Otherwise, she'd have a lot of cleanup to do after all this wraps up."
Tamiel Luxis	Tamiel rejoined the resistance, after an extended break back home rebinding some new books for proper inclusion in the library. "I should have been here," she groused, as she combed over the building. Not that she necessarily would have spotted it, or been able to stop it. Still... "Chasing the rocks will be real hard." Red hair was tucked behind her in a ponytail, falling in the the middle of her back. She'd wiggled into the kind of cheap gray t-shirt and ratty pants that had seen a lot of wear, and wouldn't mind some scuffs and scraps. "I can help with that, some..." She claimed a rake from Riku, "Thank you..." before turning herself toward the task of cleaning things up. She gathered herself, trying to fortify her mind, before heading in--Tamiel used herself as a sort of magic detecter, trying to listen, to hear on some other spectrum for the sound of magic. It was an indistinct hum, that made her halo tremble--but not helping much more than telling her where was 'hot' and where was 'cold.' Just cause she knew something was there, didn't mean she knew where EXACTLY it was...or how to get it out. "It is my first time. Or, unnaturally, it is anyway." "I'm more used to it as training," Tamiel allowed. "The old demon hunters barraged themselves with illusions and compulsions--" She breathed through her teeth, as she stepped somewhere too-hot, and saw a flash of a scowling, statuesque woman with golden eyes. She steps back, unsteady, and rakes it out into the middle of the floor. "Got one here..." She joins Odette, eying the quartz that the emt had pulled into the middle of the room warily, before skirting along the wall, to try to keep out of range. "... It'd suck if all of those were really going to happen." "It might just be a potential future," Tamiel muttered, as she fell on one knee, and struggled to coax the tiny thing out into the open. "A 'may be' instead of a 'must be.' It could be like...An extension off of her ability to give warnings? But like...This."
Regulus	''It isn't possible for her to have seen the thing these horrible little rocks show me.'' "Who knows? She's a top notch diviner. Normally if someone says they can see the future, they're probably putting a con on you, but I have no idea how much she can see." Regulus sighs so long that it's actually more of a siiiiigh. "Some of what she showed me just makes sense, but some of it I keep pretty close to my chest so." VROOOOM she has her vaccuum cleaner safely suck up the rocks Holly added to a pile. She doesn't think it's a good idea to let these little rocks pile up. "It's hard to see just how many of them there are. We didn't have eyes on her the whole time and they're really small. Not heavy. A single bag could hold who knows how many." "But illusions are less effective if you know to expect them, for sure, but it's still gonna suuuck since they know exactly what makes us freak out. It's shown me the Storm a bunch of times already. Definitely, uh, number one fear of mine." Though notably her fear isn't being the one who is Stormed it's seeing all the friends she made (along the way) get sucked up in one. Or rather, she IS afraid of being Stormed, but clearly it's picking up the other stronger lingering anxiety. She's not sure if that's because she's grown to rely on the Suitcase and grew comfortable in it. "Yeah, cutting up the plants or whatever to get to the quartz won't help anyway. Carefully rake it off without disturbing the plant too much and we'll get it in the handy dandy Regulus Vaccuum Mk I." ''Got one over here!'' "Be right there...!" Regulus says, moving over. If it's a good range there's good odds she will be hit by it so she takes a moment to steady herself. "It's her own arcane skill so. It is what it is. Unfortunately for her, we're not gonna give up just because--" She pauses a moment, staring at Vertin's withered and comatose body. She shakes her head and VWOOMPHS up the quartz. "Luckily the vaccuum pouch acts as an inhibitor otherwise this would be impossible." She looks over to Tamiel. "I've gotten hit by enough of these, there's no way it's destiny. Nobody gets hit by all these fears like that, some of my fears are a little silly, no way they'd come true. Gosh, I'm just glad Polly's not here right now." Polly is already anxious enough! "What sort of stuff have the rest of you seen?" Regulus asks a really personal question!
Riku Asakura	'It isn't possible for her to have seen the thing these horrible little rocks show me.' Riku doesn't like to think that Matilda was showing him what she did on purpose. It'd be incredibly assholeish to do, and frankly, he doesn't see how she wouldn't be equally afraid because of what she said to him about transforming. "I don't know... I'd like to hope she doesn't know what she's inflicting on us," Riku manages to get out, raking some corner of the entryway. 'Thank you...' Riku knows that look, and he nods to Tamiel. "It's alright, glad you're here now." He says to her, smiling a weak smile. These illusions have done a number on his mind. He'd sleep more easily, never having to stare down that nightmare again. '... It'd suck if all of those were really going to happen.' Riku goes quiet at that. For him... it wasn't just a matter of if, but when. Dysnomia had confirmed his fears, and that Belial was 'proud' of the work he'd been doing. That right there is enough to make his blood run cold. He gives Odette a stare after a minute, but then turns his head away. "Yeah..." he finally manages to say. 'What sort of stuff have the rest of you seen?' Riku freezes at that, staring down at his part of the courtyard like it owed him money. He isn't sure whether to reveal it or any part of his fears. What if they were prophetic? That part really made his stomach do flips in his chest. "...About my father," he manages to get out.
Tamiel Luxis	"I've gotten hit by enough of these, there's no way it's destiny. Nobody gets hit by all these fears like that, some of my fears are a little silly, no way they'd come true." A smile, in spite of everything, "...That's a relief. I wouldn't want to worry about..." She moves on. "Anyway." "What sort of stuff have the rest of you seen?" Tamiel grips at her wrist, biting down at her lip, while she tests the thought against the inside of her head. "Some of them mine are...a little silly too." Her wing flicked, slightly. "It's my teacher or my mom, and I know--I know I've broken things in a way I can't fix--" She stops in the middle of walking through the corridors, looking around. She paces forward, backwardward...and points at a piece of vegetation. "There's something there." She frets, trying to get a glimpse of the rock, pulling leaves out of the way like THIS and THAT. Finally, she says. "...I...Keep seeing my shadows start to take me like Arcana's, too."
Odette Raskins	"It might just be a potential future," "At most. I hope it's just a lie." Odette replies with a chuckle, although she looks uncertain a moment later. "Or-nnnn. I mean, I guess it is technically possible, but if it's just a lie, that means she'd be a jerk, and I don't really... Want that, either." "but some of it I keep pretty close to my chest so." "I know for a fact that I never told her about getting my hand cut off, so... M-maybe it's mind-reading?" Odette suggests, takes a moment to think about that possibility, then furrows her brow at realizing she's not as uncomfortable with that being the case as she thought she would. Maybe she's just gotten used to that being a thing. "And I never told her about working in a space station, either, so it's that or she really is the real deal." "Luckily the vaccuum pouch acts as an inhibitor otherwise this would be impossible." "That's good... Maybe we could sell these to a collector once it's all done and over with." Odette half-jokes with a giggle, flinching again when her wandering takes her into the path of another stone. She sees an axe sailing through the air right at her, and her own hand following after it with the wristband cut right through. "F... Feeling another one here. Hand chopped off." Odette speaks up in a measured tone, traking deep breaths and pressing her hands together to make sure she can still feel them. It sort of helps a little bit, but not enough to stop the color from draining out of her face. "I-it's usually that, or getting sucked out of an airlock." She answers Regulus openly, taking a moment to breathe before continuing. "Oh. Er. An airlock is a controlled doorway that's used to control how much air gets let out into space when we're coming in and out. Don't want to depressurize a whole station or hallway every time someone comes in and out, you know?" She explains semi-helpfully, not quite certain how much context anyone here has for that. "It gets a little easier to handle once you've had it happen a few times. J-just a little."
Holly Asturias	"I'd like to hope she doesn't know what she's inflicting on us," "I-it can't be a prediction, right? That'd be too-" "Who knows? She's a top notch diviner." "If these are the future..." A cold sweat runs down the back of Holly's head, and her smile falters long enough to be suspicious. The way she grips her right arm, suddenly painful, doesn't help at all. "I don't want it to be. My, and I thought she was such a kind soul too. She must have had to learn to bite to make it as a Foundation agent." "What sort of stuff have the rest of you seen?" Holly relaxes, Or tries to, anyway. A deep breath, letting go of her arm because she digs in with her nails, unstiffening her posture. A smile, the most precious of masks one can wear. "Death, I suppose." Not quite. But also very much so. "My body crumbling. My heart exposed. My life's work - my family's work - with nothing left to show for it but a mad beast. A mad beast that surely feasted on everyone close to me." She fears death. Hers, specifically. And ever since Schneider, it's one step closer. "It is cruel. And if she foresaw it, and it isn't but a trick..." It's pointedly obvious that the next quartz she sees, she picks up. Holds it up, like the last one. Better the poison you know than the one you don't. "It is behind me." Her body freezes, and she can't turn to face it. The four-legged beast leans forward, head over her shoulder, unseen by anyone but her. Just far enough she can see the golden hand on its face. "... I can't ever imagine hardening against it." The quartz is tossed away, for Regulus to scoop up. Holly lets her breath out, and finally sighs. "I should stop touching them." "...About my father," "You too?" It isn't what she sees, but in the end he's to blame for all of it anyway. "How much easier it would be to deal with if all I saw was him. But then I see him every day, so it isn't so much scary as it is maddening and infuriating." Ah, her smile breaks again. It hadn't, even as she held one of the rocks, though that was a bit of a fear response too. "...I...Keep seeing my shadows start to take me like Arcana's, too." "Arcana... what a terrifying woman. And yet if she offered a chat and a drink, I might take it anyway." Holly laughs a bit. "Lilian said she understood her. It's been on my mind since the Walden, that I couldn't understand her. How unfair to her."
Regulus	"Mm... But she'd have to know what the Incantation did." Regulus says. "You can't do an incantation that makes people see visions based on their fears without knowing they're gonna show some fears." Did Matilda know she'd be seeing things like 'The Storm'? Probably not, but she'd be more upset at the idea that Matilda didn't know what she might be seeing than the idea that she chose to do it because she actually felt it important to stop them and did it anyway. She thinks about whether she should even say anything like that, though. She's not exactly eager to get all the people with her on Matilda's case, but it's not like they don't have legit reasons of their own to be upset. "...I'd rather Matilda know." She ultimately decides. "She's not exactly gonna apologize any time soon, so I'd rather it not be an accident. If she only thought of our fears as some slightly annoying cleanup to deal with, then---I guess she didn't really think we'd be stopped by what she did, which means she did it for no reason or because it was 'her job'." ''About my father.'' "Oofh that sucks, man. Enough sad, my guy." She patches Riku's shoulder. "I really appreciate you standing with us. Especially through all that. I can't fight kaiju, but if you ever need someone to put on a party or work with some arcane machinery or alchemy, you know to hit me up." She's honestly surprised that Tamiel says anything at all about her fears. Regulus squints at the vegetation but she's having a hard time spotting it. "Oh, like, the goopy stuff? I remember you saying something about that before. Goop really doesn't match my style at all." ''Maybe we could sell these to a collector--'' "Maybe I can dump 'em in Matilda's room." Regulus mutters but that's more grumpy wishful thinking. "It bugs me, Matilda's gotta know it's fucked, she's not like the others, I can tell that she can tell. She even told me before 'don't get caught' not 'don't break the rules', that's not exactly peak SPDM mentality." ''I thought she was such a kind soul too.'' Regulus isn't in the mood to argue against it. "Oh geeze." Regulus says to Holly. "Because you're a Revenant? You don't really seem the type to." As she approaches the quartz, she reeeeaches over carefully and jostles the plants with her rake gently until a piece of quartz tumbles out. She pulls the rake towards the piece Holly found and vwoomphs them up. "You uh. You don't gotta set 'em off. That sort of feels like just harming yourself if you do it intentionally. Do you need a rake too? Do you want to handle my rake?" rShe thinks about whaT Lilian had said about Arcana and how they treated her. "Apparently they were really kind to her after she left. The humans tried to ... they all went at her, making demands, but..." She sighs. "Lilian's on our side here. But she can't help us directly, so. Just remember that when radio stuff happens."
Riku Asakura	'You too?' Riku nods a little, a bit hesitant to talk about it more, but...well, he'd gotten this far. "Specifically saying that he's proud of what I've been doing, just right after people being afraid of me for transforming. It's been a hard thing to swallow, you know?" He looks to Regulus, expressing thanks for him being here again. He takes a breath. He used to think it wasn't a big thing, but now the weight of the organization might be weighing down on him... and he wonders, without their help, would he be able to face his father when the time came? He pushes these fears down and looks at Regulus head-on. "Well... hopefully we won't be here for two months, because my birthday is at the end of August. It'd be nice to actually have a real party for a birthday, ya know?" 'Arcana' Riku doesn't know what to think about Arcana. It's one thing to fight for your people; it's another to get that at the cost of so many lives and to hire and encourage people like Forget-Me-Not. "I... don't like her methods."
Tamiel Luxis	"Death, I suppose." "Ah--don't--" Holly picks up a stone bare-handed, and Tamiel winces in visible sympathy. "Is that death looks like for you? Changing into something else, feral and hungry?" A pause. "...If that's okay to ask?" In reciprocity, "...The worst was me being sealed up. In the dark." A pause. "My mom told a story about an angel that was trapped in a concrete foundation...for hundreds of years. We can't die easy, but we, well..." She doesn't go through the effort of articulating the rest. "...About my father," "You too?" "...Parents, I guess." Tamiel commiserates as best she can. "I guess that's something normal to be scared of?" An uneasy sound, stratching at the back of her neck. "I'm sorry that happened to you." "Oh, like, the goopy stuff? I remember you saying something about that before. Goop really doesn't match my style at all." A slow nod, and she lets herself expound. "I've always been able to slink back. And the shadows have always been my..." She considers how to phrase it. "...Friends. When I want somewhere to hide, they're there for me. When I need help, I can call on them." "But--when I got close to her, they...swallowed me up, and tried to wash me away." "Lilian's on our side here. But she can't help us directly, so." "...I'd wondered." Tamiel mused, letting herself get distracted. "There's no way that she's okay with the way they're treating Vertin." A pause. "...It helps to have people on the inside. But...Be careful where you say it. If I were the Foundation, I'd have lots of people trying to listen in on us."
Holly Asturias	"which means she did it for no reason or because it was 'her job'." "I wonder about that. She didn't seem the type to wish to harm others. Not even Horrors. She wanted to avoid the battles, where she could, despite her clear ability to handle them." Her job... it must have been. "Perhaps it'll let her earn favor? It isn't as though they haven't been sending people after us, now and again. It was going to be one of their elite field agents, sooner or later, no?" "It bugs me, Matilda's gotta know it's fucked," "I hope so. It'd trouble me if she turned out to have no hesitation about such cruel methods." "Because you're a Revenant?" "No? What type do I seem to be to you, Regulus?" She's a bit fascinated by that, ever since Angela, Petra and White made such a point of underlining the gap between her demeanor and how she presents herself. "You uh. You don't gotta set 'em off. "I have a broom, but thank you," Holly says, showing Regulus her broom, which she did in fact have, but just chose not to use right then. "Don't worry. I'm done touching the rocks. That's enough death breathing over my shoulders for the week. Perhaps month." "Apparently they were really kind to her after she left." "Mm. 'The humans'. The ones driven mad by the Storm Syndrome? I wonder if it's fair to look at what they did then, and think, 'this is their true selves'. Like the ones that Forget-Me-Not had fight us. Was that really them? Was that 'humanity'? Or were those starving, suffering souls desperate to live? I can't be angry at that. I'd like to live, too. I worry, and I don't agree, about the divide. Just like I don't agree about 'Revenants' and 'humans' being irreparably different, or having to be defined by a power dynamic." Holly, idly brooming a quartz away towards Regulus, shakes her head. "That's pessimistic. I don't like it. Not when the Manus pushes it. Not when Lilian scoffs it. You know?" "Specifically saying that he's proud of what I've been doing," "Oh." No that's so very different, actually. "I can relate a little bit to 'scaring people', but I can't say I've ever had it like you seem to have. For what it's worth, your transformation is quite impressive." "...If that's okay to ask?" "That's a... complicated question. But if I were to summarize it, it's a very real possibility. That one day I will turn into a Horror, too." She doesn't want to say 'consumed by her curse' out loud. It's already real enough, and she doesn't need people worrying about her. "There's no way that she's okay with the way they're treating Vertin." "She's not. I trust she's attempting to change things from within. Flamel seemed to be of that mind too. If we're all here, then nobody is keeping an eye on what's happening out there. It's important!"
Odette Raskins	"About my father," "It's my teacher or my mom," "A mad beast that surely feasted on everyone close to me." Hearing everyone else's visions has Odette furrowing her brow in troubled thought. Why didn't she see her own parents? Were they simply too far away for that to be a tangible fear at all? Had she gotten so wrapped up in her own world that she stopped worrying about them? Had she become a terrible daughter ever since leaving home, and not even realizing it until now? Wiping her face off with her sleeve, Odette abruptly starts tapping away at her PDA and gives herself a brief respite from the crystal visions. "Y.. Yeah, let's let her know after we get all these things together. If she really doesn't know, then it might be a new power awakening or something. Th-that could be exciting!" Odette suggests, trying a smidge too hard to sound upbeat there. "... Can Arcanists develop new powers like that? Like, after they've already figure theirs out. But if she does already know?" "Maybe I can dump 'em in Matilda's room." Odette whistles briefly, and she finishes typing on her PDA. "But she can't help us directly, so." "There's no way that she's okay with the way they're treating Vertin." "I trust she's attempting to change things from within." "Miss Rook's got it rough. Can't do this without people complaining, can't do that without other people looking at her funny, even though she's one of the most powerful folks around... That's too much for one person to have to deal with. I mean, I'm still glad she's doing what she's doing." Odette sighs and rubs her face. "We just really... Really need to make sure this all works out, and without causing her more trouble."
Regulus	Regulus is honestly glad at least one other person here isn't afraid of her parents. "You want me to organize your birthday party?" Regulus asks Riku, speaking of people with a BAD DAD. "I guess I'd have to hit up your friends for your likes and hobbies and stuff. Though any Regulus party is gonna have some serious music blasting, so I hope you're ready for that!" ''It's another to get that at the cost of so many lives--'' Regulus wonders what it takes for revolutions to happen successfully. Or even protests, really. She's had 'successful' protests but it's pretty clear to her now that the free love movement and all those labor union protests didn't exactly win in the longterm. She's not sure if it's because they won and then lost later or just because they failed from the beginning. And if that's the case, how much violence is justified? "Well, I'm not gonna agree with their methods. But if you can't offer better ways to improve the world, you can't really complain about the methods others choose to take. The world hasn't made a better offer. But I believe in Vertin, so I feel like I can oppose them without feeling too bad about it. But ... well, think of Druvis and Schneider. For them, Manus was their only option. And 'Team Timekeeper' as a better future is still not real for Druvis. It couldn't be." She sighs. "So, you know. Even making Team Timekeeper a reality is just the beginning. But once there's an option, we can prove it real, and once we prove it's real, then--people who think Manus was their only option, maybe they'll see us as an option." She tapes her cheek with her index finger, mulling on it. "Well, sounds like they're pretty scary fears, Tamiel. I'm sorry you've gotta deal with 'em, maybe leave the bulk of the quartz hunting to us, I don't want to make you experience a hundred of years in concrete." She's grateful her fears aren't parent related at least. ''Perhaps it'll let her earn favor?'' "Maybe. But man, if she needed a way to rise up in prestige so she could influence stuff to be better, ... well maybe not, they might still have some way to check in on us." ''What type do I seem to be to you, Regulus?'' "Well I mostly know vampires from movies and books and stuff, it's not like I've ever known a real one, but there's always the whole 'ahhh i thirst for blood' thing and sometimes they can't control it or sometimes, like, they're just evil with it, but vampires get this kind of reputation you know? So." She shrugs both shoulders. "Anyway, you seem pretty sweet." Did she... forget they were opposed at one point? "Maybe not the best judgement sometimes." Oh okay she didn't forget. "Though it's pretty unusual for the vampires to be afraid of death since their whole thing is they don't die normal." She glances over to Holly. "Well it doesn't really matter if it's fair or not, perople don't--just kind of shrug that thing off even if they're not being normal. And it isn't like, um, that humans without Storm Syndrome can be pretty uh. Abnormal. About women. I can't blame Storm Syndrome for everything." Even if she's understating how Lilian talked about it because she doesn't want to get into some of the THEMES.
Regulus	''That one day I will turn into a Horror, too.'' "Oh." Regulus says, now understanding. "...Maybe Sotheby and I can find a way to put a stop to it. I may be an alchemical genius, but Sotheby's suuuuper talented." Occassionally, she vrooms some quartz up. ''Odette whistles briefly.'' "Uhh don't take that as something I'm actually gonna do, okay, I'm just bitching." She shrugs a little and adds, "I wouldn't think too much about not causing her trouble. We do what we gotta do. Think of it this way, Lilian insists I don't let any of you back out now." She looks at Riku as if to say 'especially him'. Oh no! He's screwed either way now!!
Holly Asturias	"but there's always the whole 'ahhh i thirst for blood' thing" "Oh! I see." Holly, smile widening, opens her mouth just enough for her teeth to be emphasized - are her fangs a bit longer, now? They were already quite obvious, but they're quite a bit more now. She leans forward - and down, given her height - to lock her red eyes into Regulus', with barely any room to spare between their faces. The dangling chains from her golden head ornament make soft little rattles as they move. "Might it reassure you to know that I do thirst? That..." One finger points forward, nail tapping against Regulus' chest, just where her heart is. "I feel every beat? The soft pulse of warmer air," her nail traces, from her heart, the exact trajectory of her carotid artery, until the finger is putting pressure on Regulus' upper neck. "The shifting warmth that starts in your chest and runs along your limbs, under the thinnest layer of skin, and so very little protection." Her eyes look at Regulus' neck, and she pulls her hand away. "Would it reassure you, or make you worried?" Holly laughs, and pulls away, closing her eyes and shifting from her emphasized-fangs smile to a big funny grin. "My, all those things are true, and yet I choose to be caring. And 'sweet'. Because I must heal the world, and if it falls to me to be kind then that is a charge I shoulder oh-so-gladly. Whatever would be the point of saving my world if there is no sweetness left in it afterwards?" "Though it's pretty unusual for the vampires to be afraid of death since their whole thing is they don't die normal." Well, back to normal conversation. "Though our lifespans are measured in centuries, if not more, we can be slain. And we can become Horrors, when starved too long, or exposed to the golden light of the Resurgence." Or when you bear a terrible family curse. Yay. Yippie. "I can't blame Storm Syndrome for everything." "No, I guess not. But I believe most people are just and kind. It's a tragedy that exposure to the worst can burn people out on the whole of everyone else. I hope Lilian will be fine. She seemed so... pro-humanity, when it came to my world." HMMM. Themes. Holly doesn't get it. "...Maybe Sotheby and I can find a way to put a stop to it." "Perhaps! My research has been hitting dead ends, I admit. I wish to share the whole of it, and gather those who can help. If I can count on you, I'll be certain to call on you after this whole rebellion matter is sorted."
Riku Asakura	'Though any Regulus party is gonna have some serious music blasting, so I hope you're ready for that!' Riku actually smiles at that, getting used to the loud music of the Regulus thing of doing things. "Sure. It'd be nice to have a loud party that is just about having fun, you know?" Riku admits. 'But if you can't offer better ways to improve the world, you can't really complain about the methods others choose to take.' Riku frowns at this, because it's...not wrong, but he also doesn't think it's quite right either. Murdering people, especially those not even directly responsible for the hardship, doesn't seem fair. It just seems like another step on a spiraling path of hatred and revenge. On the other hand, he doesn't have a good alternative. "I guess... It's why we have to make sure we don't lose this protest." 'That one day I will turn into a Horror, too.' Riku frowns at Holly. He's seen horrors; they were... frightening, and a really bad way to go if that was the fate of all Reverants. "I'm sure Sotheby and Regulus could find something to help stop that, especially with all of the work you've done on it too." 'She looks at Riku as if to say 'especially him'.' Riku flashes a smile to the group. "I'm not thinking of backing out, so don't worry about that. I think it'd be really bad of me to back out at a time like this. We gotta make changes to the Foundation, and I believe in Team Timekeeper."
Odette Raskins	"people who think Manus was their only option, maybe they'll see us as an option." "That'd be pretty great, yes. A-although it sounded like... Mm. It didn't sound like people really trusted the Foundation, so we've really got our work cut out for us to make sure they don't look at Team Timekeeper the same way. Once things settle here, that is." Odette laughs lightly as she tries looking at success as a given, but something about that still bugs her. "Think of it this way, Lilian insists I don't let any of you back out now." That's what's bugging her. She doesn't say anything about it, though, just letting that unease sit in her chest while she sweeps underneath a desk to make sure there's nothing else left under there. "D... Don't worry, Reggie. We'll make sure Team Timekeeper comes together, because it's definitely way too late to back out now." She rakes out another crystal, and she flinches reflexively while jumping to her feet. It doesn't feel like anything's changed, though, except for the room getting bigger. No, she's moving... Out of the room? Everyone's getting further and further away, and she quickens her pace. That's not getting her any closer, and she starts running. "Wh..? Wait up!" Odette shouts for real, running after that vision and only snapping out of it when she runs straight into a wall hand-first. She crumples for a minute to tend to her wrist, cursing the wristband for digging into it and hurting her wrist more. "Grhk... O-okay, bad... Bad idea. A-another one." She gestures towards the stone, looking over just in time to- "I feel every beat?" "The shifting warmth" -stare right at Holly and Regulus, slightly slackjawed. It takes Odette a moment to remember that her wrist hurts. Also, she's suddenly reminded of Arcana for some reason, and she squeezes her wrist to snap herself back to reality with pain.
Regulus	''Might it reassure you to know that I do thirst? That I'm tapping you right where your heart is? that I'm looking at your neck and poking at it with my finger while showing you my fangs??'' Regulus gets the wrong idea of what Holly is up to here. "Um...! Not really!! Looking for a sexual relationship right now! I'm happy to do other relationship things though, I'm sorry if that disappoints you, but we can be friends, yeah! I'm not super into biting or being bit, like it just hurts for me? And your teeth look a lot sharper than the people who have bit me in the past so." ''Whatever would be the point of saving the world if there is no sweetness left in it afterwards?'' Regulus is still confident that Holly was flirting with her. "Don't worry, we can still do other sweet things. Like bike races. And clambering." Regulus thinks most people are just and kind more or less too, but Bond said stuff about this. Even the saints will step on your face if they're drowning. Lilian said something similarly too, that you can't expect untrained people to react effectively and kindly in the face of primal danger. "It still sucks to be on the other end of it, though, that's all I'm saying." Regulus offers Holly a thumbsup to the idea of helping solve the vampire plague though. Boy, she hopes that's something she can do without being eaten or, worse, undergoing a vigorous makeout session. ''Riku frowns--'' "Yeah, I know, but I think it's pretty clear that Vertin's way of doing things is through a path of understanding, not judgement." But she smiles. "Yeah, I figured it's a little late for you to jump ship anyway, but --yeah. You get me." Odette does bring up the danger of Team Timekeeper just looking like another arm of the Foundation. Even in the best case scenario with this protest, they're still gonna be working with the Foundation. It's actually a BAD THING if they don't end up working with the Foundation! But-- ''But something else gets Regulus's attention.'' And that's Odette staring at Holly! "Oh but, like, if you're into her, Odette, I think you'd make a cute couple." Regulus assures her, giving her a thumbsup. The relationship has Regulus's blessing!
Riku Asakura	'Regulus and Holly.' Riku tries not to stare at this and instead focuses on his corner of the courtyard again. "I thought she was in a relationship with that one nurse..." Riku says, thinking about it. Then again, maybe some people have many different relationships? He isn't into that himself, but it isn't his business either. 'Relationship talk.' Riku is clueless about relationships. He can't even tell that a woman close to him likes him, because he's not very perceptive of that kind of thing. Riku nods at Regulus about not jumping ship. Though about Vertin, he thinks about what Regulus says about understanding and not judgment. It's sometimes hard to think that way, Riku thinks to himself. Especially when some of these people, especially Mesmer, are just so... awful to people and themselves. "I'll try and keep that in mind about Vertin. It's not easy, sometimes..."
Tamiel Luxis	...maybe leave the bulk of the quartz hunting to us... The offer makes her pause for a moment, biting her lip, before shaking her head, "I can push off something that gets that bad...If it takes long enough. I've had lessons." A sigh. "And besides...That would just be a guess about what it'd feel like. It's not the same as something built on a real memory...Like Holly's Horrors, or the Storm." That Holly wouldn't have known what it was like to become a Horror wasn't something that occured to her--their struggles were Real, and hers were Fake. Theirs experienced, hers imagined. "Oh but, like, if you're into her, Odette, I think you'd make a cute couple." Tamiel stares, openmouthed, as Holly advances on Regulus. Somewhere, she could imagine a flaming sword drawm from it sheathe, or ice creeping across the floor. It wasn't until Regulus responded, that she was given another context to interpret it from. "...Holly should probably get things settled with Lilian first, if she hasn't." The angel mused, biting at her lip. "I don't know how useful it'd be--But maybe I could do some part to help?" She paused. "...But first, I'd need to review what revenants in your world are, and what standard they're held to. And your way of doing things." "...Don't take it personally, please."
Holly Asturias	"I'm happy to do other relationship things though," Holly stops and blinks. "I'm... I'm sorry?" She's lost Regulus! That's tragic! "I was being quite literal!" "the people who have bit me in the past so." "My, you have other vampire friends?" "Like bike races. And clambering." "Oh I would love to ride a bike, I've never gotten to! A little bit of clambering is never unwelcome, as well." "I thought she was in a relationship with that one nurse..." "That one nurse...? You surely don't mean Nicole? She's my assistant! It isn't like that at all." Hitstun number two. "...Holly should probably get things settled with Lilian first, if she hasn't." "W-What?" Settled? Huh?? With Lilian??? "Is there a... do people also believe that Lilian and I are...?" Huh???? Holly is perpetually hitstunned there. Her little portrait keeps wiggling left and right in confusion, which is how she misses Tamiel's follow-up. Don't worry, she still made note of it!
Odette Raskins	"Oh but, like, if you're into her, Odette, I think you'd make a cute couple." "Huh?! Wha-I-who-What?" Caught completely on the back foot and forgetting about her wrist pain, Odette stammers rapidly while shaking her arms from side to side in a high animated 'WHAT NO' gesture. "I-I don't-I mean, Doctor Asturias is really cool and super hot and all but-she's into I thought she was-yes!" She goes a mile a minute, pointing quickly at Riku when he brings up a third party that can take the attention off her. "Or someone even cooler like-yes! Miss... Rook?" She looks over at Tamiel, then back at Holly, then at Regulus, then at Tamiel again before stroking her chin. "I could see it, but she's married already."
Regulus	''It's not easy, sometimes...'' "Sure could stand to be a little less exciting for a while, big guy." rRegulus is worrying that these people might be a little too okay with subjecting themselves to psychological trauma but she supposes that she's in a mindset where she'd rather endure it but that's because it's HER JOB to do this, they're just helping out out of the goodness of their hearts. It's different. Even if her job is also because of her own heart. "Well I believe in free love I don't think you really need to 'settle things', but it's probably good for avoiding drama." Regulus admits. Then she blinks. "Er, but are they? I never got that impression there." ''I was being quite literal!'' "So was I." Regulus says. ''My, you have other vampire friends?'' "Nope." Regulus says. "They just bit me because they were very excited and happy and they were into it. I know it might not seem like it right now, but I am a fashionable young lady with beautiful eyes. People get into me sometimes. But yeah, grab a bike and we'll make it happen." She looks to Odette and frowns at her. She reaches over for Odette's hand and drags her over to Holly. "Come on, it's fine, just try it out. You have a lot in common. If you don't WANNA, sure, but don't use other people as an excuse." She has forgotten about the quartzes for the moment.
Riku Asakura	'She's my assistant! It isn't like that at all.' Riku's eyes brighten a little. "Oh really..? Sorry, I thought it was..." he says, apologetic. 'Settle things with Lilian.' "Um... I didn't know you and Mrs. Lilian were a thing? I thought that Mrs. Tamamo was into managamy." It's okay, Riku won't tell or anything, he's great at keeping a secret! Odette's hand is dragged to Holly's, and he smiles. "Aww, that's sweet." 'Sure could stand to be a little less exciting for a while, big guy.' "Well, hopefully, after this rebellion, things will calm down for a while!" he says, willing for things to be quiet. Sadly, things are never quiet!
Tamiel Luxis	"Is there a... do people also believe that Lilian and I are...?" "I..." She blinks, looking to them. "I thought...? The way you talked...?" Immediately Tamiel doubts and reinterprets everything. "Maybe I'd got it wrong...?" She frets, steps backward, falls back over a root in a pratfall as she's assailed by the fear of waking up for work late.
Holly Asturias	"I-I don't-I mean, Doctor Asturias is really cool and super hot and all but-she's into I thought she was-yes!" "What a charmer! I quite appreciate it~. To be quite truthful I'm not quite looking? I'm so taxed on free time already, I don't know how I'd possibly make enough for someone else!" She will, nonetheless, give Odette a TIGHT HUG when Regulus drags her over, appreciative of the compliments, and careless for where that puts the much shorter Odette's head. "The Timekeeper certainly knows how to surround herself with wonderful people, doesn't she?" "So was I." "I think I'm a little bit confused." "They just bit me because they were very excited" "I seeeeee," Holly finally pieces together the bare minimum of the puzzle. "Hm, perhaps it's a little bit too late to also reassure you that I can make my bites quite painless? The benefit of being a healer. I've never enjoyed the idea that my feeding can cause pain, so I've developed a Forma just for it." "I thought...? The way you talked...?" "Um... I didn't know you and Mrs. Lilian were a thing?" "I'm quite sure we aren't! Why our last meaningful interaction outside the Suitcase and the beach was her firing her handy little piece right into my face. I should ask her for a second look, sometime." She may not be able to help it.
Odette Raskins	"I thought that Mrs. Tamamo was into managamy." "I thought...? The way you talked...?" "Yes, I thought they were both... Er. Exclusive, yeah." Odette's confusion and understanding keep ping-ponging as she looks from person to person, although what gets her panicking again is what Regulus proceeds to do. "Come on, it's fine, just try it out." "Tr-try what out?! I don't know what-I'm...!" Odette starts to protest while getting tugged along, although a brief moment of clarity does make her wonder why she's protesting so much. It's not like she's seeing anyone, and as much as she's been fawning over Lucius and crushing on APPLe and even eyeing ghosts... It's not like anyone would ever look at her that way. Before she can potentially tank her own mood thinking about that too hard, though- "What a charmer! I quite appreciate it~." -Odette suddenly finds it harder to breathe, figuratively and literally. She squeaks, she muffles, and she squirms about, but she doesn't actually try to extract herself! She does have the wherewithal to return Holly's hug, at least, albeit a little limply the longer it goes. "Th... That's too bad, but I understand." She replies with a few rapid nods, red-faced but not looking distressed in the slightest. "I-I'm still in the middle of paramedic training myself, and all the... You know, all this work we're doing here is still going on, and Trideag stuff never really lets up, and the Company's always got me on assignment when I'm not pretending to handle-" She clears her throat, briefly forcing herself to sound more PR-y. "-legitimately handling Company outreach efforts." "her firing her handy little piece right into my face." "D... Did she shoot you with something?" Odette asks, fully unaware of what can or can't be helped in this instance.
Regulus	"Ack!" Regulus hurries over and VROOMS up a quartz as she's assailed of waking up for work early. Regulus will respect someone saying they're not LOOKING for a romantic relationship but Holly is just saying she's BUSY. "You know, it's fine if you're not looking but you'll probably spend a lot of time with each other anyway, I mean--she's a nurse too isn't she? So...You can be ''busy'' together." She smiles cheerfully as Holly subjects Odette to a mighty non-bitey embrace. ''Biting without it hurting!'' "Huh..." Regulus considers this for a moment. She has never been bitten in a way that didn't hurt so could she be sure she'd not be okay with it if it didn't? "Well, I'll think about it." She tells Holly. "It's not like I don't enjoy cuddling." "Aww..." She says as Odette returns the hug. That is some kind of success and maybe, hey, that'll make the rough work of the day a little bit easier. Victory for Regulus! But she doesn't insist any more at least, allowing Odette and Holly the opportunity to NOT become...something more?!
Riku Asakura	Riku just listens to both Odette and Holly. "Aw, that's a little sad. Doing things shouldn't get in the way of love, you know?" Riku looks wistful; his exposure to love was love in the Toku sense, which means rescuing a lady in distress and beating rubber suits who inevitably come to attack them. "It's about understanding, and punching anything that tries to come in between you and love."
Odette Raskins	"So...You can be ''busy'' together." "That... Could be difficult. I mean, the Company is a little... You know." Odette chuckles lightly, clearly not getting what Regulus really means there. "Not the best? Tridaeg's pretty cool, though, so maybe that could be...?" Yep, she's definitely not getting it, and now Odette's gotten more confused! "About the same as things are already? I-I guess?" "Doing things shouldn't get in the way of love, you know?" That, meanwhile, is a lot more understandable, and also just as fluster-inducing to Odette. "W-well, of course it shouldn't, but I don't see what that has to..." She starts to protest again, but finds her resolve wavering. It's not like she didn't mean those things she said before! But surely Holly would have better prospects than herself, right? "... I can't even punch that good."