Personification Life IC IX - [Semi Open]

[Swith Witherward]

"Woh there. First off, I am a machine, m'kay. Nothing you can riddle on me. Heh, get it? Wink, wink, nudge, nudge." Seeing how the situation wasn't going to light up he continued. "Can't spill. Besides you are a smart individual, where was the first place you met me? More or less where I met Thriller? If you answer right, I will tell. Deal?"

She paused to give his question some thought. She'd planned to put a boltgun to his head, but she supposed riddles might be better, plus the weapons heavy rounds always left an oily smell in the air.

Accessing those memories required her to revisit that locked door. Her head bowed and she sat back and rested her butt on Levy's knees. She looked defeated. It was either go there, or else continue to reabsorb. She'd protected Naomi from that fate by shoving Swith into her, but the soldier she'd fashioned on Gliese was already returned to her. Sutra was next, and Sutra was Athosh's party girl. She skimmed the surface memories regarding Levi and cringed.

"Look," she said quietly... and sincerely, "I don't want to go there. Swith figured you out when you kicked Superbia's infant form down the stairs. This was shortly after she was nearly destroyed by Atosh. It's her most painful memory because, typical of Thriller, he bounded out of the apartment and left her there to nurse wounds caused when she rescued him. He was clueless. She was still welting so badly that she'd pulled away at the thought of losing him yet again, and you were left to barter with me. I'm the one who tricked you. I surface when she pushes her emotions away. I'm the instinctive nature. It's complicated."

Charumati furrowed her brow. It was indeed complicated.

[Germanic Templars]

"Woh there. First off, I am a machine, m'kay. Nothing you can riddle on me. Heh, get it? Wink, wink, nudge, nudge." Seeing how the situation wasn't going to light up he continued. "Can't spill. Besides you are a smart individual, where was the first place you met me? More or less where I met Thriller? If you answer right, I will tell. Deal?"

She paused to give his question some thought. She'd planned to put a boltgun to his head, but she supposed riddles might be better, plus the weapons heavy rounds always left an oily smell in the air.

Accessing those memories required her to revisit that locked door. Her head bowed and she sat back and rested her butt on Levy's knees. She looked defeated. It was either go there, or else continue to reabsorb. She'd protected Naomi from that fate by shoving Swith into her, but the soldier she'd fashioned on Gliese was already returned to her. Sutra was next, and Sutra was Athosh's party girl. She skimmed the surface memories regarding Levi and cringed.

"Look," she said quietly... and sincerely, "I don't want to go there. Swith figured you out when you kicked Superbia's infant form down the stairs. This was shortly after she was nearly destroyed by Atosh. It's her most painful memory because, typical of Thriller, he bounded out of the apartment and left her there to nurse wounds caused when she rescued him. He was clueless. She was still welting so badly that she'd pulled away at the thought of losing him yet again, and you were left to barter with me. I'm the one who tricked you. I surface when she pushes her emotions away. I'm the instinctive nature. It's complicated."

Charumati furrowed her brow. It was indeed complicated.

He then grinned again and said, "You know, glad to tell the truth, but. Comma. There is a certain individual's name you said that might have something to do with it."

[Tiltjuice]

"Could have been anyone really, we don't know yet. I don't think we should make any assumptions." Kei nodded casually. "Be aware, I want to know who took her, and then beat the snot out of them." She chuckled, censoring herself. She didn't see any obscenities as necessary at the time. "But yeah, looks like they're both fine, eh?" She suggested.

"What do you mean about Dora being drawn to me? I don't follow."

"True, yes. I wonder if she'll turn up here, as well, or if she's staying in the city. If it's the second possibility, then we would know that Allspice wants something there; but if she comes here, we might have to think about a plot against some or all of us personally. As for Dora..." Luce shook his head with a courteous smile. "Nothing really, just a minor observation."

Behind his back, Dia rolled his eyes, mouthing that he'd tell Kei later. He'd experienced plenty of Luce's minor observations before. The man always said something and then refused to explain.

"Match up top? Can I ask what you mean by matching?", The confused girl asked. "It's kind of a foreign phrase to me."

That was the thing about Torii. Though she knew English well, some things still eluded her, such as certain phrases and gestures.

MB, who had started to dive back down to start digging, popped up a second time like a jackrabbit-in-the-box.

Yes? Oh! I go under. You follow on top, dig through surface. Match my progress. Where do I meet you? His nose twitched in excitement - this promised to be fun. The sisters always had time for him.

Dan peered at it a little closer, moving in with curious eyes even if he didn't quite notice his vision was beginning to get a little... unbalanced. It's black and red lines looked a bit sinister. "These are the clothes we died in." His eyes shot up then, he didn't know what to say about that. "I'm sorry," he said finally, though he figured he probably should have said that earlier when Hans told his bit of back story. Looking at his half emptied drink, "How bout another drink? All round," he added to include Cuisine, "to strange beginnings."

"Certainly," boomed Cuisine jovially. "What would you all care for?"

He stood aside to let Hans and Dan get a fuller view of the liquor cabinet, which looked like most supermarkets' liquor aisles. The benefits of having a large cabin; there was plenty of space to clear out for Hans' proposed cabaret setting.

[Swith Witherward]

Dan peered at it a little closer, moving in with curious eyes even if he didn't quite notice his vision was beginning to get a little... unbalanced. It's black and red lines looked a bit sinister. "These are the clothes we died in." His eyes shot up then, he didn't know what to say about that. "I'm sorry," he said finally, though he figured he probably should have said that earlier when Hans told his bit of back story. Looking at his half emptied drink, "How bout another drink? All round," he added to include Cuisine, "to strange beginnings."

"No need for sorrow," Hans smiled reassuringly at Dan as he surveyed the chef's bottled wares, "But I'll take another drink. Strange beginnings and continued tales of glory!"

He scratched his nose. Chances were good that Cuisine didn't have a second bottle hidden away. "Whatever beer you have, Cuisine," he said.

His ears had detected a drawl. Help yourself, please. Had Chrys talked to Dia yet? Hans felt himself somewhat trapped. He needed to work with her to get to the bottom of this Allspice issue, and he needed to work with her regarding Bane and the base mission, but then there was the elephant in the room. Chrys probably didn't see it as such but, to Hans, it was absolutely a moral dilemma. It was really just Hans' upbringing, he admitted to himself. He was old-fashioned in that regard. Open relationships... yes, good. Until they became open, he was left to feeling as if he were stealing Chrys from Dia. Hans didn't approve of theft in that manner. He didn't approve of doing that to Dia.

"Add a double whiskey chaser, Cuisine."

[Swith Witherward]

He then grinned again and said, "You know, glad to tell the truth, but. Comma. There is a certain individual's name you said that might have something to do with it."

"Atosh?" Charumati's expression soured and her eyes narrowed. "Do you mean to tell me Atosh is behind this?"

Had Swith been in control... well, we'll not go there. Charumati was much better at dealing with those emotions and so everything in the universe remained in place and cheerful little kittens didn't die senselessly on a global scale.

"That son of a bitch! Is he behind this? Did he find a way to kill Thriller?" She'd sat forward again, hands on Levi's shoulders and a mad gleam in her eye.

[Germanic Templars]

He then grinned again and said, "You know, glad to tell the truth, but. Comma. There is a certain individual's name you said that might have something to do with it."

"Atosh?" Charumati's expression soured and her eyes narrowed. "Do you mean to tell me Atosh is behind this?"

Had Swith been in control... well, we'll not go there. Charumati was much better at dealing with those emotions and so everything in the universe remained in place and cheerful little kittens didn't die senselessly on a global scale.

"That son of a bitch! Is he behind this? Did he find a way to kill Thriller?" She'd sat forward again, hands on Levi's shoulders and a mad gleam in her eye.

"Ding, ding, mother-f**kin' ding. Ladies and gentlemen we have a winner! But wait there is more! Say got a tv somewhere here?"

[The New Velociraptor Empire]

"Oh." Caroline hadn't given any thought to electricity. She'd assumed they had electric in the new hut. "Well, if push comes to shove, I can plug Tina into me and run her a bit each morning. She'd like the companionship, I think."

She slipped on her shorts and pulled her tank top over her bikini. "And we could always poke around the old place for some wire and maybe patch in to the electrical lines that feed some of the other huts? It would be an interesting endeavor."

"With a little persuasion we can avoid arousing suspicion by getting others to get some power wired in." Jonathan replied. He didn't want his new identity to become associated with the electrical engineering abilities of his former self. He was sure they could get Neil to wire up the beach, although that would be dangerous given the Raptors' regards to safety. "But I think she would like that." he added acknowledging that Tina gleefully looked forward to any slight or brief interaction at all.

[Mincaldenteans]

"Certainly," boomed Cuisine jovially. "What would you all care for?"

He stood aside to let Hans and Dan get a fuller view of the liquor cabinet, which looked like most supermarkets' liquor aisles. The benefits of having a large cabin; there was plenty of space to clear out for Hans' proposed cabaret setting.

"No need for sorrow," Hans smiled reassuringly at Dan as he surveyed the chef's bottled wares, "But I'll take another drink. Strange beginnings and continued tales of glory!"

He scratched his nose. Chances were good that Cuisine didn't have a second bottle hidden away. "Whatever beer you have, Cuisine," he said.

His ears had detected a drawl. Help yourself, please. Had Chrys talked to Dia yet? Hans felt himself somewhat trapped. He needed to work with her to get to the bottom of this Allspice issue, and he needed to work with her regarding Bane and the base mission, but then there was the elephant in the room. Chrys probably didn't see it as such but, to Hans, it was absolutely a moral dilemma. It was really just Hans' upbringing, he admitted to himself. He was old-fashioned in that regard. Open relationships... yes, good. Until they became open, he was left to feeling as if he were stealing Chrys from Dia. Hans didn't approve of theft in that manner. He didn't approve of doing that to Dia.

"Add a double whiskey chaser, Cuisine."

"I'd like," Dan stopped a moment to take another gulp of his drink as he thought about it. "Something that goes with this... would ginger ale go with this? Aurora once told me she enjoyed it at some reception that included a bunch of other faes and a few mortals, but I didn't pay attention to her story since well, faes don't need food and it's not as if it's important, likely should have at least heard her out," he shrugged thoughtfully. "Anyway, yep, something with ginger ale?" He asked inquisitively to Cuisine. He was comfortable on his stool, a warm rising starting from his midsection spread through his body and Dan wouldn't notice the world spinning unless he got up. He was also happy, and his skin began glowing a soft luminescence that, for now, was barely noticeable.

[Swith Witherward]

"Ding, ding, mother-f**kin' ding. Ladies and gentlemen we have a winner! But wait there is more! Say got a tv somewhere here?"

"We do," Charumati slid from Levy's lap and opened a small cabinet along the wall.

She pawed through the contents of a drawer and pulled out a remote, tossing it to Levi. She settled down on the couch next to him and allowed her anger to silently brew deep within. Atosh would pay for what he did. She hadn't been able to nail him for what he did to her relationship with Ogoti. She hadn't been able to prevent him from killing her next mate and then her child. But this time? This time, she planned to shred him from existence.

"Purple button at the top," Charumati growled.

[Swith Witherward]

"With a little persuasion we can avoid arousing suspicion by getting others to get some power wired in." Jonathan replied. He didn't want his new identity to become associated with the electrical engineering abilities of his former self. He was sure they could get Neil to wire up the beach, although that would be dangerous given the Raptors' regards to safety. "But I think she would like that." he added acknowledging that Tina gleefully looked forward to any slight or brief interaction at all.

Caroline considered his idea. "Yes, that would be best. Perhaps we could ask Bran? He's very handy with things."

She glanced at Tina and shook her head. "My returned memories mean that I recall some of the downsides to construct life. Living in isolation when not in use was rather painful. We sit and wait and wonder if we'll ever have a purpose again. I think that's why Tina matters to me. I know she'd like to have power simply because, were I in her place, I'd want to have the ability to interact."

[Tiltjuice]

Cuisine raised a large hand to a gray eyebrow, then disappeared behind the back of the counter for a few moments. When he resurfaced, he had a can in one hand and an opened bottle in the other, which he duly set in front of his two drinking companions.

"There you are! One beer - Heineken, and one ginger ale - Canada Dry. And yes, that should go quite well with ginger ale. Unless you want it mixed into another gin and tonic?" The cheftender considered that for a few moments, and then rubbed his hands lightly.

"Well, another one won't hurt you, I don't think." He quickly mixed together another gin and tonic, and set the fizzing cup alongside the ginger ale. "As for myself, I think I'll join you in beers, Hans."

A long arm reached out and pulled the tap off, which Cuisine used to fill yet another glass. Then still another one received the double whiskey that the German cultist had requested.

"To strange beginnings it is, gentlemen!"

[Germanic Templars]

"Ding, ding, mother-f**kin' ding. Ladies and gentlemen we have a winner! But wait there is more! Say got a tv somewhere here?"

"We do," Charumati slid from Levy's lap and opened a small cabinet along the wall.

She pawed through the contents of a drawer and pulled out a remote, tossing it to Levi. She settled down on the couch next to him and allowed her anger to silently brew deep within. Atosh would pay for what he did. She hadn't been able to nail him for what he did to her relationship with Ogoti. She hadn't been able to prevent him from killing her next mate and then her child. But this time? This time, she planned to shred him from existence.

"Purple button at the top," Charumati growled.

"Alright!" He pressed it and a video of Thriller in his recovery pod came up. Moments later, an individual wearing a white robe with hood that covered over his face stepped up to his pod. With a few push of buttons, Thriller's oxygen supply was compromised, causing the man to awake and start panicking. However, as it went on, his banging on the glass and over all struggle slowed down before he seized to move overall.

"Now look at his left hand... Or shall I say tentacles. There is only one individual I know who has that and who would try and get back at Thriller. And who could possibly try and work with him to make it better. But that is all theory for now."

[New Aksarben]

Sigtrygg continued walking for a bit longer, somewhat enjoying the warm weather but at the same time pining for the cold weather of his homeland. It was just too warm for him here! there were no clouds to keep the sun from scorching the land under it and the skin of anyone who stayed outside long enough. That must be why the people of the Mediterranean were so dark skinned compared to his people. Spending all their lives in such a climate had scorched their skin browner, like it had been cooked. But at least the breeze was nice coming off the water. That very much made up for the heat coming off the sunlight.

But when the viking glanced around he noticed something sort of following him along the beach. "Hello?" HE asked, turning around to look at it with curious expression. "Who are you?"

"An explorer in the further realms of strangeness. A reassurance to some. A confounder to others. You may call me Deader," said the mass of red robes in Old Norse, save for its name, which came in English. "And you are?"

It wondered what this one was like. It hoped for a kindred spirit, similar to the raptors and MB.

"You speak in my native tongue? Not many seem to know it here." Sigtrygg responded in kind, scratching his chin and thinking. Only Klaus had really known the language from the people he met. It was strange seeing this.... what was it? Just robes or something, or was there a creature inside of it? Sigtrygg could not tell right now. Maybe knowing it for longer would allow Sigtrygg to find that out.

"Well, I am Siggtrygg Karlsson Snjalli. I am a prince of the Kingdom of Finland and Varangian Guardsman for the Roman Emperor. But I suppose now I am simply a 'bouncer' at Chaos. But it is good to meet you, Deader. Interesting name for someone, that.... But still, you seem to be quite interesting just by your appearance alone, and also mysterious."

---

These two humans seemed nice to Namal. At least so far. This Tieria person one seemed a bit bored though. And surprisingly strong for such a weak looking person. There definitely was more to him than was plainly evident. Probably something about where he came from and who he came from. He may even have abilities like the natural ability for Khydir to manipulate fire. But it for now it would be rude to ask personal questions on a whim.

Bran seemed much nicer, even though he had only said one word so far. He just held himself in a much better way than Tieria did. Much kinder, but at the same time quite confident and strong. Much like how many Khydir held themselves, though with less obvious pride. Khydir were a very prideful species, seeing as they had the longest recorded history of any of the ones on Lykosae. But most of that's beside the point.

"Again, a pleasure to meet you both. As you guessed, I am a newcomer, so I do not know anyone at the apartments yet." He gave a small smile to both of them and another nod, before glancing back to Myra. He wasn't sure what else to say right now, though, as neither of the two he had just met had asked him anything in particular.

[Swith Witherward]

The airplane made a leisurely pass over the Island, circled and came in low. The rear cargo door opened and two cultists took their place, the wind whipping at their uniforms and slapping their faces. They began to lob tethered boxes out of the door. The tethers caught the boxes and the turbulence scattered their contents. It went a little something like this. Down below, and only in the area of the huts, it began to rain leaflets which announced that Neil and Gretta were hosting a dinner party that night. It gave the time and place and other pertinent information. All were invited to the celebration. The plane picked up speed and soon vanished into the late afternoon sun.

[The New Velociraptor Empire]

Caroline considered his idea. "Yes, that would be best. Perhaps we could ask Bran? He's very handy with things."

She glanced at Tina and shook her head. "My returned memories mean that I recall some of the downsides to construct life. Living in isolation when not in use was rather painful. We sit and wait and wonder if we'll ever have a purpose again. I think that's why Tina matters to me. I know she'd like to have power simply because, were I in her place, I'd want to have the ability to interact."

"Yes, Bran would be the safer choice. If he could build a plane, he can set up a small electrical infrastructure." Jonathan agreed.

"I assure you Tina is asleep, but I agree we can't keep her waiting. She always looks forward to us." he added.

---

Neil picked up a leaflet from the dozens that blanketed the yard. Reading through it, he couldn't say that he was surprised. But the plane did interrupt their sunbathing. The chicks played on the beach, now digging a moat around their fully functional sand castle.

"Finally some people will come to dinner. It's been a while since we've seen them" Gretta remarked as she flicked the leaflet off her face.

"Indeed, I was beginning to suspect that the usual guests were imagined." Neil concurred as he called the children in to prepare for the evening.

[Urran]

Tieria managed the skeleton of a smile as he waited for Bran and Namal to begin a conversation. He was no good in social situations anymore since Veda had taken away his ability to blend in with different social groups when he got disconnected. Now he had to learn how to be social all over again and it was very difficult for the Innovater.

[Torsiedelle]

"Well", Torii said with emphasis, hopping down in a squat to look at MB better, "How about we meet up at my hut? It'll be like one o'them trenches, whadya say? I'll go get a shovel real quick.", She said, before hopping up and jogging towards her hut, excited to help MB.

[Tiltjuice]

"Well", Torii said with emphasis, hopping down in a squat to look at MB better, "How about we meet up at my hut? It'll be like one o'them trenches, whadya say? I'll go get a shovel real quick.", She said, before hopping up and jogging towards her hut, excited to help MB.

MB's whiskers twitched. The 'Communist girl' was always fun to hang out with. So full of energy; her sister was kind, and Giovenith was the third person of five or six that he most enjoyed spending time with, aside from Cuisine.

He whisked out of sight again, letting his ears swivel back and forth for a few moments, then vanished completely into the tunnel to start digging. As he did so, however, there was a faint fluttering noise behind him, and he turned awkwardly in the small space to see one of the dropped leaflets land in the hole. Returning, he flipped it over and began reading.

Hmm. This looks good. Food! But then again, bad raptors. Must make sure I'm not food, he thought, and promptly ate the leaflet. Popping up for the third time, he picked up another of the leaflets scattered about the place and headed for Torii, flash-jumping onto her shoulder.

"An explorer in the further realms of strangeness. A reassurance to some. A confounder to others. You may call me Deader," said the mass of red robes in Old Norse, save for its name, which came in English. "And you are?"

It wondered what this one was like. It hoped for a kindred spirit, similar to the raptors and MB.

"You speak in my native tongue? Not many seem to know it here." Sigtrygg responded in kind, scratching his chin and thinking. Only Klaus had really known the language from the people he met. It was strange seeing this.... what was it? Just robes or something, or was there a creature inside of it? Sigtrygg could not tell right now. Maybe knowing it for longer would allow Sigtrygg to find that out.

"Well, I am Siggtrygg Karlsson Snjalli. I am a prince of the Kingdom of Finland and Varangian Guardsman for the Roman Emperor. But I suppose now I am simply a 'bouncer' at Chaos. But it is good to meet you, Deader. Interesting name for someone, that.... But still, you seem to be quite interesting just by your appearance alone, and also mysterious."

"Prince Sig!" said Deader. "I suspected it was you - of course, or I wouldn't have tried Old Norse. Then, there aren't many who match your size and strength."

It looked down at itself. "Yes, I suppose so. Mystery is good, however, for the mind. It keeps wonderment fresh in the world, does it not? And speaking of which, might I have some of your hair? I've never experimented on a prince before, you see."

[The BranRiech]

"Seeing Tasia here though would mean we have more of a chance of righting the wrongs though, I'd believe. Then it'd be clear that it's a plot against us as a group, but if she's not here, it leaves a large amount of doubt, in my mind." Kei said, disregarding Luce's refusal to give her more information, instead opting to ask again. "I'm a persistent bitch, come on, Luce." She chuckled lightheartedly.

It was then that she noticed a flyer sitting atop her head, pulling it off to see the invitation for the Raptor's dinner that night.

"Hey, we all going to this?"

--

"Well, none of us bite, so hey, you'll get along here fine. You're quite an imposing character, but you seem like a pleasure to meet as well." Bran nodded, finally accepting the handshake he was offered. Namal seemed nice enough, and was generally making the same assumptions that he was about him. He seemed pleasurable to be around in general, despite the imposing appearance of the Dragon-type creature. "Hmm, I know someone who might want to meet you, very interested in . . . Dragons, if the term is correct."

[The Damnatius]

"Um, yes, wait, no... it was the thing with you breaking into my apartment, something about a fight... do you remember?" He said, sounding agitated by her lack of knowledge. By now he had begun to wonder if she had some sort of memory issue. He couldn't quite remember himself if she'd told him her name, but it was strange she was introducing herself now when they'd met before.

Chrys' brow furrowed. "A fight? Well, the only fight I've been in, this past week, has been with - "

The lightbulb dawned, in a rush of words. " - with my twin sister. Tasia. Or with someone who looks like her. I don't know. My brothers and I, and some other friends of mine, are looking into it. It's a bit of a mystery what she's doing, but the one thing we're fairly sure of is that she's helping people spy on us at the building. Why, we don't know. Do you want to help us?" Her blue eyes lit up like fireworks, and without waiting for a reply, she curled her arm around his wrist and tugged, trying to urge him into motion toward Luce, Dia, and Kei at the Conservators' hut.

It took a good moment for him to process what she had said, catching only the first and last segments of the statement. The Assistant filled him in on what he missed, to which he was both interested and uneasy. He normally hated people they were just as cold and embittered as he, but he found a lacking of such mutual animosity, and found it especially awkward for him when she made physical contact. Without fighting against it, he shuffled forward a few inches as she pulled. He looked to his aid for advice, but human interaction of such nature was beyond the seemingly omniscient entity that occupied his body.

"Er.. okay... I guess..?" He said, stammering to form a proper counter to her proposal. He did recall his purpose for even being out here, regretting it inside for he knew some form of interaction would occur somewhere along the way, but he hadn't expected any so soon.

------ Later On ------

Calvin crumpled the leaflet in his hand, shucking it into the small, decrepit stone firepit before his hut with intent to burn it later once he figured out how starting a fire worked exactly. To him, the paper appeared as another temporary eviction notice, apparently these shit-shacks needed fumigation for the termites that infested them, as though it would help. This was no specific leaflet he picked up, but much rather a trick the assistant had played, seeking to get him out there, roaming around for a signal. It was moreless a shot in the dark, hoping that the dinner's location would have a better signal it could latch onto.

Social Occasions were a new thing to him, but he'd seen it rather often as of late - the meeting in the apartment, random crowds of people roaming about the streets, this 'dinner'. It must have been something that simply faded away in the sands of time, along with numerous things that he had come into contact with. He would act no different than he always had, of course, but the simple idea of being forced into such instances irked him to no end. Not to mention the food they ate, pointlessly complex for no given reason - he couldn't taste anything, anyway, so be it string beans, protein shakes or lobster, it was all matter for which his body consumed and put to use.

[Torsiedelle]

"Okay, here I come!", Torii cheerfully said, even though MB was on her shoulder. She skipped on out of the hut, carrying an E-tool she had found buried away in the less-entered parts on the hut (an artifact of its previous residents), and came to a sliding stop on her knees, leaving a trail of the white sand behind her. Almost immediately, she plunged the shovel into the ground and started digging up a trench for her rodent friend. "So, about our bases....wait, what's the flyer for? A dinner for the raptor-folk?"

Hmmm, the raptors. Suspicious bunch, but Torii really liked them, despite not really ever getting to know them. They seemed like cool neighbors, and she had put their earlier schemes behind her. They were certainly more agreeable than the human adults, and they had none of the stupidity!

[Mincaldenteans]

It was still at the bar that several leaflets would rain down upon Dan, Hans and Cuisine. By now, Dan was most certainly drunk and the glowing luminescence was showing clearly. Pale and soft in light, it held all the delicate nature of Summer most at ease, and Dan was very much so. With an empty stomach and nothing but alcohol to fill it in with, Dan was drunk, though not a total mess thanks to his innate healing ability. The power of the fae in him reacted to his emotions and the light of summer was never more attuned that it was now, or so he was convinced while telling that to Hans and Cuisine. He was happy, comfortable and the drink with ginger ale was likely to stay with him well into the night and throughout the rest of this retreat on the island. He tried to explain the glowing effect with some success and he knew he got the emotional state right, at least he thought so.

"And when I'm mad, which is never," he bobbed his head with affirmation, "it usually becomes a solid light. Never tried it before though, nope, more of a practice thing with Aurora.

A few leaflets floated down and one traced a ghost of a touch upon Dan's forearm. He turned his head, noticing it and picked it up, reading it immediately, "Nice a dinner party! Think they'll have turkey? That was good." He asked, clearly not remembering his vegetarian promise to himself.

"Anyway, I should probably stop with this drink, though I'd certainly wouldn't mind having it again at dinner time," he chuckled to himself and pushed the near empty drink away from him. Hiccuping a bit, Dan blinked his eyes several times and nodded with a grin, "Alright, need to get this in check, thanks for the company Hans and Cuisine, and I'll see you on later tonight." He got up, swayed a tad, and made his way back to his hut. Glow and all.

[Tiltjuice]

"Okay, here I come!", Torii cheerfully said, even though MB was on her shoulder. She skipped on out of the hut, carrying an E-tool she had found buried away in the less-entered parts on the hut (an artifact of its previous residents), and came to a sliding stop on her knees, leaving a trail of the white sand behind her. Almost immediately, she plunged the shovel into the ground and started digging up a trench for her rodent friend. "So, about our bases....wait, what's the flyer for? A dinner for the raptor-folk?"

Hmmm, the raptors. Suspicious bunch, but Torii really liked them, despite not really ever getting to know them. They seemed like cool neighbors, and she had put their earlier schemes behind her. They were certainly more agreeable than the human adults, and they had none of the stupidity!

MB nodded, eyeing the E-tool, impressed. He began waving his ears like slow fans, waving away some of the sand that had reached up to where he was, and stirring up Torii's hair a bit.

Bad raptors tried to eat me once, though. Not sure if going. You?

[Tiltjuice]

"Seeing Tasia here though would mean we have more of a chance of righting the wrongs though, I'd believe. Then it'd be clear that it's a plot against us as a group, but if she's not here, it leaves a large amount of doubt, in my mind." Kei said, disregarding Luce's refusal to give her more information, instead opting to ask again. "I'm a persistent bitch, come on, Luce." She chuckled lightheartedly.

It was then that she noticed a flyer sitting atop her head, pulling it off to see the invitation for the Raptor's dinner that night.

"Hey, we all going to this?"

Luce moved smoothly onto the topic of the flyer, mumbling a quick prayer of thanks to Fate for interrupting at that precise moment. "What's that you've got there?" he said, changing the subject with a straight face.

The wooden platform creaked as Dia got up, interested, and took over the bottle of cognac with a giant swig. He moved to read over Kei's shoulder, then grunted again.

"Hmm, that looks interesting," he rasped. "And no information for you, Luce. That's fair, isn't it?" He elbow-nudged Kei slightly, with a conspiratorial air.

[Torsiedelle]

"Okay, here I come!", Torii cheerfully said, even though MB was on her shoulder. She skipped on out of the hut, carrying an E-tool she had found buried away in the less-entered parts on the hut (an artifact of its previous residents), and came to a sliding stop on her knees, leaving a trail of the white sand behind her. Almost immediately, she plunged the shovel into the ground and started digging up a trench for her rodent friend. "So, about our bases....wait, what's the flyer for? A dinner for the raptor-folk?"

Hmmm, the raptors. Suspicious bunch, but Torii really liked them, despite not really ever getting to know them. They seemed like cool neighbors, and she had put their earlier schemes behind her. They were certainly more agreeable than the human adults, and they had none of the stupidity!

MB nodded, eyeing the E-tool, impressed. He began waving his ears like slow fans, waving away some of the sand that had reached up to where he was, and stirring up Torii's hair a bit.

Bad raptors tried to eat me once, though. Not sure if going. You?

"Ooooh, sure, I'll go. I actually like the raptors. I don't get to see them much,, but they're cool people, and they're so wacky. I respect them."

She lowered her head and went back to digging out the trench. It was starting to get hard, but she didn't mind the work; it was refreshing. Besides, she didn't have much else to do.