Personification Life IC IX - [Semi Open]

[Torsiedelle]

"Yea, it is!!", She exclaimed in possibly the loudest reply she had ever given, pretty much a happy yelling. Her eyes almost popped out with the enthusiasm, too, as she threw herself back into her seat.

"I mean, I love this stuff! This is what I wanted to do, with us two and Kei, just have a nice time together! Well, at least we got to hang out. That counts a lot, though."

Her smile twisted into a smirk, accompanied by a perturbed expression in her eyes. It was quick, but noticeable before her expression went back to its happy state.

"Ya know, we really need to all hang out more! I mean, remember way back when we three would get a drink and gossip? I love doing girl stuff like that, but it seems that between drama BS, and these damned jobs and quests, and everything else, times like that are rare. Also, where's Kei? I think the last time I ever seen her was.....oh, god, a while ago. I need to change that!"

Dora began to look faintly alarmed at Katya's sheer volume, but shook herself and took it in stride. She hadn't missed the look of concern, though she'd bring it up later.

"Well, we can always go find her now if you want," she drawled, and as if by magic (or Chaos influence) the waiter appeared at the side of the table, depositing the check and clearing away the plate and bowl smoothly.

"Ah, no, we can do that later on.", Katya replied. "I mean, we're done here, pretty much, and we both have things to do today, and I would love to do it sometime, but if you have something to do, or something comes up, then I don't think we should go running around for a girl's date."

She backed that up with her usual faint, assuring grin. "I'm just happy I had a day like this."

She almost jumped. "Oops, sorry about that. I'll just pay my end...."

She produced her wallet, and handed out her end of the bill, and a little more, and sat back, feeling satisfied,

[Tiltjuice]

"Ah, no, we can do that later on.", Katya replied. "I mean, we're done here, pretty much, and we both have things to do today, and I would love to do it sometime, but if you have something to do, or something comes up, then I don't think we should go running around for a girl's date."

She backed that up with her usual faint, assuring grin. "I'm just happy I had a day like this."

She almost jumped. "Oops, sorry about that. I'll just pay my end...."

She produced her wallet, and handed out her end of the bill, and a little more, and sat back, feeling satisfied,

"Sure, that works too. I thought this was a date, though?" Dora's eyes crinkled up at the corners in the way they did when she was teasing. Taking the pen, she scribbled a quick message followed by a rough sketch of the rattlesnake symbol, and nodded. "I'm good to go whenever you are; or we can just relax for a bit."

She glanced around, just as Katya had done earlier. The restaurant wasn't quite full yet; that would come with the evening rush, she guessed.

"Anything you want to talk about, or should we go?"

[The BranRiech]

"I didn't say no, just stating it will be a new experience for me. I don't eat Human fruit anyways, although apples are quite good." Yuna smiled, concentrating mostly on the larger ones. Sure, the pups were adorable, but they were fragile, and Yuna didn't trust herself all that much yet to allow herself to handle something so small and helpless. The larger ones though? They were still pretty cute.

"I'll take one."

--

"Eh well, I love my mom and all. Besides, I'll be dealing with her for quite a while yet. Lamias live to be around 150 years old. So for a Human, that's a lot of holidays to invite them over for." Toscha giggled at the thought, picturing in his mind someone celebrating their 150th, with nothing to say or do. "Eh, n-nevermind that. I'd love to find a place to sit, or maybe someplace to eat, ya?"

For Toscha at least, befriending someone this quick wasn't strange at all, after vowing to be the better man, he would be as friendly as possible, to the point of it hurting him in the long run.

--

"I believe that's it then. I can obviously drive back, although I don't have my forklift anymore to move the wire with." Bran said, thinking that the Tech Priests had come and taken it already. "No, wait, I've got a little crane in there, not as convenient, but it works." He noted. Well, it was more like a gantry, but he could lift the spools from the truck with it at least.

"Thanks a lot, Marcus. Do come over sometime."

Rachelle and him both got ready to leave.

--

"Well hey! There's a plus then, right?" Rylli grinned. She didn't know Aleki all too well, having met him a few times, but this was quite a treat, seeing them both together like this made her smile, reminding her of Bran. "Well, the husband's out with the daughter, working on that crazy project of theirs that I refuse to fly if they finish it." She said. "But that's alright, Tolya's more than enough of a project for me to take on. He's right over there in the crib, if you want to say hi or something."

Natiya nudged Aleki, and pointed to it.

--

Drova just looked saddened, now unable to express his feelings. He needed to keep them bottled up. Absolutely needed to. Octavian was his best friend though, how could he not tell him whatever? Ah, he didn't even have any plans for today either. He wanted to get things done the other night, but his internal conflict kept him from that, and now it was keeping him from this. Plus, his sister was still missing. "I want to look for Yuna, if that's alright. You can accompany me, that sound good?"

[Torsiedelle]

"Ah, no, we can do that later on.", Katya replied. "I mean, we're done here, pretty much, and we both have things to do today, and I would love to do it sometime, but if you have something to do, or something comes up, then I don't think we should go running around for a girl's date."

She backed that up with her usual faint, assuring grin. "I'm just happy I had a day like this."

She almost jumped. "Oops, sorry about that. I'll just pay my end...."

She produced her wallet, and handed out her end of the bill, and a little more, and sat back, feeling satisfied,

"Sure, that works too. I thought this was a date, though?" Dora's eyes crinkled up at the corners in the way they did when she was teasing. Taking the pen, she scribbled a quick message followed by a rough sketch of the rattlesnake symbol, and nodded. "I'm good to go whenever you are; or we can just relax for a bit."

She glanced around, just as Katya had done earlier. The restaurant wasn't quite full yet; that would come with the evening rush, she guessed.

"Anything you want to talk about, or should we go?"

The girl blushed a bit, even though Dora was joking. "Date"....yea...it gave her that strange feeling in her chest, like excitement mixed with anxiety. She was also curious about the note Dora just scribbled...

"Well, you've led the way so far today, so I guess you can decide on what to do. I won't mind, you know, I just enjoyed the time we've already had."

[Tiltjuice]

The girl blushed a bit, even though Dora was joking. "Date"....yea...it gave her that strange feeling in her chest, like excitement mixed with anxiety. She was also curious about the note Dora just scribbled...

"Well, you've led the way so far today, so I guess you can decide on what to do. I won't mind, you know, I just enjoyed the time we've already had."

"Me, too," said Dora in a softer, more blurred version of her usual drawl. "Come on, then," she held out her hand to help Katya up. "Why don't we head back to the building and figure it out from there?"

The black receipt holder was still open, allowing Katya to glance down if she wanted, at the note that said Please put noodles, soda on tab. -D.

(OOC - Sorry, a bit short. Had to squeeze it in before dinner. Back after!) Scratch that, still here.

[The Damnatius]

"Alternate... universe..." Calvin said, trying to consider what it was he was speaking of. By his description, he had a slight idea, and decided to respond, out of pure curiosity, setting down the small collection of odd foods he would retreat to his room with for usage later.

"Wait... you're... you're not from here... like... this universe? That's... what?" He said, stumbling in his words. The man's casual attitude made it seem all so simple to understand, and he of all people should know that there is more than what meets the eye, but had simply assumed he'd stumbled upon some severely retrograded splinter of humanity in one of the few remaining habitable worlds somewhere in the galaxy, that he had made a short journey from one point to the other. Such things were rumored to exist, details were never given, but this seemed to fit what they spoke of quite well... however... something in his mind now began to put the puzzle together all the way, slowly, but certainly none the less. Then of course, the question that had never occurred to him did. Everything here... was ancient, but it wasn't. Maybe it was too simple a fact to realize, but everything was far beyond old, he was inept to just how large a technological gap there was, even if this particular splinter of people decided to slip back a couple hundred years, some of these things were lost in the years gone by. He looked up towards the man, tilting his head slightly, and asking a very simple thing...

"What's the year?"

"Well, this is twenty-thirteen but my universe Aperture Prime is still in nineteen eighty-five. Time displacement can occur since time flows at different rates and directions in some universes...or it is just a matter of people starting calendars at different points. I'm Dr. Stephen Koontz by the way." he introduced himself and held out a hand to shake. It was nice for him to meet someone who wasn't a horribly mutated monstrosity here. Of course he'd been to worse places in the multiverse, including one dominated by praying mantises and one ruled by a sentient glowing cloud that ate people's skin and rained dead animals. But he was never stuck in any one of those for more than a day.

His knowledge of the nature of the multiverse came from that he was a scientist that spent ten years helping build a machine to cross over between them. Sure it was more complicated than the Portal Device and more cumbersome and unpredictable to use, but he loved that he worked on something that those snobs at Black Mesa didn't think of.

Calvin didn't respond, blinking a few times, looking endlessly beyond the doctor. Under his left sleeve, the device connected to his wrist started flaring red, and a short series of quick, loud beeps sounded out, before Calvin fell backwards into the counter and collapsed on the floor, having simply fainted from shock. It was then and only then that a sheet of light appeared before his face, a simple square that flashed between red and yellow, with an exclamation mark highlighted.

Calvin simply could not handle the idea that he had not only both been shifted universes and times, from relatively a distant future to a time which would be equal to returning to before homo sapiens were even in existence, he was practically living amongst his great ancestors, and at the moment, the organic computer which was his mind could not fully handle such a thing so instantly, and even with all the many augmentations he had within him by his very nature, it still failed him.

[Torsiedelle]

The girl blushed a bit, even though Dora was joking. "Date"....yea...it gave her that strange feeling in her chest, like excitement mixed with anxiety. She was also curious about the note Dora just scribbled...

"Well, you've led the way so far today, so I guess you can decide on what to do. I won't mind, you know, I just enjoyed the time we've already had."

"Me, too," said Dora in a softer, more blurred version of her usual drawl. "Come on, then," she held out her hand to help Katya up. "Why don't we head back to the building and figure it out from there?"

The black receipt holder was still open, allowing Katya to glance down if she wanted, at the note that said Please put noodles, soda on tab. -D.

(OOC - Sorry, a bit short. Had to squeeze it in before dinner. Back after!) Scratch that, still here.

"Oh, you..."

Katya was going to take Dora's hand, but, before she did, she tossed down a few more dollars for the price of the meals. "That's done...okay, let's go then."

She firmly took the other's hand and stepped close for comfort. Back home, and now she could rest for a little while by herself, and maybe even pretty herself up some more.

[Urran]

Yoshi smiled at Torii and nodded. "Of course I'll lead. We don't want you getting lost do we?" He tussled her hair and thought back to his first days at the apartment. He could barely get a full sentence out around Torii, and now, she looked up to him and he was playing the big brother figure to her. Of course, that didn't mean he was any less shy, only that he was now used to her and saw her as the little sister he never had. She was his family, which, he knew meant that, whenever the time came, he would have to be strong for her and carry her through rough times, he just had no idea it would be so soon. No one knew. Tsu and the sisters were gone, and with them, Tora's joy and love was sure to follow. He began leading the girl down the chilly streets towards the market district and arguably one of the best icecream places in the world, Cold Stone.

--

Blossom giggled at Albert's rant and stretched her wings a bit. "I know what you mean. I have no use for electronics. Though I only look 15, I'm really over 700 years old. Electronics confuse me even though i was there for the invention of electric lights, the radio, and all of that good stuff. I don't see the point of smart phones, aren't phones supposed to be for you know, calling people? Why do they all have to play games now? And what's with texting? Why can't you just call and use your vocal chords?" She ranted on, eyes shinning brightly.

[ApertureScienceInc]

Calvin didn't respond, blinking a few times, looking endlessly beyond the doctor. Under his left sleeve, the device connected to his wrist started flaring red, and a short series of quick, loud beeps sounded out, before Calvin fell backwards into the counter and collapsed on the floor, having simply fainted from shock. It was then and only then that a sheet of light appeared before his face, a simple square that flashed between red and yellow, with an exclamation mark highlighted.

Calvin simply could not handle the idea that he had not only both been shifted universes and times, from relatively a distant future to a time which would be equal to returning to before homo sapiens were even in existence, he was practically living amongst his great ancestors, and at the moment, the organic computer which was his mind could not fully handle such a thing so instantly, and even with all the many augmentations he had within him by his very nature, it still failed him.

"Ah, a fainter." Koontz commented as he went to check the stranger's pulse and breathing. With the flashing hologram, lights, and beeping, he guessed there were some kind of machine components to the stranger. He contemplated calling for assistance from a medical professional, he may have been a doctor (of quantum mechanics), but he only knew CPR & first aid and was unsure of the internal physiology of this universe.

"Can anyone help? I'm pretty sure this man needs medical attention!" Koontz shouted to call attention to the situation.

[Tiltjuice]

"Oh, you..."

Katya was going to take Dora's hand, but, before she did, she tossed down a few more dollars for the price of the meals. "That's done...okay, let's go then."

She firmly took the other's hand and stepped close for comfort. Back home, and now she could rest for a little while by herself, and maybe even pretty herself up some more.

"I what?" Dora asked, glancing up and down the road before crossing back to the building. Chrys and Hans were still there; she wondered what they were up to, for a moment, before turning her attention back to Katya. Their closeness was reassuring, and it showed as she leaned into Katya slightly for added warmth against the winter chill.

[Torsiedelle]

Yoshi smiled at Torii and nodded. "Of course I'll lead. We don't want you getting lost do we?" He tussled her hair and thought back to his first days at the apartment. He could barely get a full sentence out around Torii, and now, she looked up to him and he was playing the big brother figure to her. Of course, that didn't mean he was any less shy, only that he was now used to her and saw her as the little sister he never had. She was his family, which, he knew meant that, whenever the time came, he would have to be strong for her and carry her through rough times, he just had no idea it would be so soon. No one knew. Tsu and the sisters were gone, and with them, Tora's joy and love was sure to follow. He began leading the girl down the chilly streets towards the market district and arguably one of the best icecream places in the world, Cold Stone.

"Oh, please, I would be terrified if I was lost in this place.", Torii responded truthfully. "The city is so big, I don't think I could stand it all. Not like the country..."

Her thoughts wandered in the meantime...Tsu was always seeming to avoid her...she didn't know why...she couldn't wait to have some time alone with Yoshi, her big bro...but Tsu....Yoshi....Tsu...She still had a nagging feeling about her girlfriend, but she really didn't want to bother Gio. She couldn't even give her friend that note she wrote months back, for fear of annoying the godling.

.....

"Oh, you..."

Katya was going to take Dora's hand, but, before she did, she tossed down a few more dollars for the price of the meals. "That's done...okay, let's go then."

She firmly took the other's hand and stepped close for comfort. Back home, and now she could rest for a little while by herself, and maybe even pretty herself up some more.

"I what?" Dora asked, glancing up and down the road before crossing back to the building. Chrys and Hans were still there; she wondered what they were up to, for a moment, before turning her attention back to Katya. Their closeness was reassuring, and it showed as she leaned into Katya slightly for added warmth against the winter chill.

"You're warm, you know.", Katya giggled. "Almost like a bunny. I just want to hug you, but that would be weird, since we're adults...maybe sitting around a fire would work? I know you hate the cold, right?"

The lobby felt so nice...the familiar scent and look, the warmth as they walked through the door, the sounds of other apartment dwellers mingling in the distance, all gave her the image of home...

[Tiltjuice]

"I what?" Dora asked, glancing up and down the road before crossing back to the building. Chrys and Hans were still there; she wondered what they were up to, for a moment, before turning her attention back to Katya. Their closeness was reassuring, and it showed as she leaned into Katya slightly for added warmth against the winter chill.

"You're warm, you know.", Katya giggled. "Almost like a bunny. I just want to hug you, but that would be weird, since we're adults...maybe sitting around a fire would work? I know you hate the cold, right?"

The lobby felt so nice...the familiar scent and look, the warmth as they walked through the door, the sounds of other apartment dwellers mingling in the distance, all gave her the image of home...

Dora stopped in the lobby and gave Katya an amused look. "If that's what you really want, I won't stop you. Yeah, the cold - not my thing. Atall. You know what? Why don't we meet back up at my apartment later? Yoshi can come too, if he's not busy."

[Torsiedelle]

"You're warm, you know.", Katya giggled. "Almost like a bunny. I just want to hug you, but that would be weird, since we're adults...maybe sitting around a fire would work? I know you hate the cold, right?"

The lobby felt so nice...the familiar scent and look, the warmth as they walked through the door, the sounds of other apartment dwellers mingling in the distance, all gave her the image of home...

Dora stopped in the lobby and gave Katya an amused look. "If that's what you really want, I won't stop you. Yeah, the cold - not my thing. Atall. You know what? Why don't we meet back up at my apartment later? Yoshi can come too, if he's not busy."

"That's fine with me.", Katya said. "Hopefully, things will go well. I know that you both are good people, so it shouldn't have any problems...but, I'll see you later?"

She made sure to quickly hug Dora, then pull away and stand at parade rest, like Tora did sometimes.

[Tiltjuice]

"That's fine with me.", Katya said. "Hopefully, things will go well. I know that you both are good people, so it shouldn't have any problems...but, I'll see you later?"

She made sure to quickly hug Dora, then pull away and stand at parade rest, like Tora did sometimes.

"Count on it," Dora drawled, arching an eyebrow at Katya, but smiling in acceptance nonetheless. "Of course we're both good people. We've got you in common, haven't we?"

She tapped the outer edge of her eyebrow. "Till then," she said, before heading off.

[Torsiedelle]

"That's fine with me.", Katya said. "Hopefully, things will go well. I know that you both are good people, so it shouldn't have any problems...but, I'll see you later?"

She made sure to quickly hug Dora, then pull away and stand at parade rest, like Tora did sometimes.

"Count on it," Dora drawled, arching an eyebrow at Katya, but smiling in acceptance nonetheless. "Of course we're both good people. We've got you in common, haven't we?"

She tapped the outer edge of her eyebrow. "Till then," she said, before heading off.

"Till then, I suppose."

Now, with nothing more to do, Katya decided that she should return home, and she did. Now was the time for a nap, and she was quick to get there to take it, disappearing into her door and locking it for a while.

[Giovenith]

"Eh well, I love my mom and all. Besides, I'll be dealing with her for quite a while yet. Lamias live to be around 150 years old. So for a Human, that's a lot of holidays to invite them over for." Toscha giggled at the thought, picturing in his mind someone celebrating their 150th, with nothing to say or do. "Eh, n-nevermind that. I'd love to find a place to sit, or maybe someplace to eat, ya?"

For Toscha at least, befriending someone this quick wasn't strange at all, after vowing to be the better man, he would be as friendly as possible, to the point of it hurting him in the long run.

"I was shown the kitchen before, perhaps we could go there and prepare hot drinks," suggested Willow, pointing in the direction down the hall. "Since they do go good with the hot weather, of course. Much of the technology here is strange, but some of the appliances there were things that I recognized and could probably operate. Do you drink the same things hyoo-muns do?"

Willow personally was aching for some black coffee, if they had any. It was his favorite drink, except during cider season, during which it was cider, because everypony's favorite drink during cider season was cider. Cider was different from other drinks. It was rare (only prepared by the Apple family annually), tasty, fizzy, made him laugh a lot, made the world a little dizzier, made him say things he normally wouldn't, like, 'Yeah, I could totally jump over that table!' or 'I think I'll start a business tomorrow' or 'Have I ever told you how much I love you?' (that one was usually accompanied by heavy emotional sobs). Yeah, cider was magical. But only if it had been the kind sitting in storage for a while, cider made immediately after they had run out didn't quite have the same affect... sometimes Willow wondered genuinely why. Oh well, unimportant. It was probably just a magic he didn't understand.

[Erucia]

Although the mention of Arthur didn't provoke a reaction from the receptionist, the camera snapped to attention and focused more closely on Ray. Doris typed Ray's name into the guestbook registry, which unknown to her was forwarded along the security network straight to the top. The automated system was quite aware of several key individuals.

"Okay, the investors tour begins in five minutes, just go to the first open door on your right and there will be a Nurse-bot to guide you along with the others." Ms. Perry informed Ray as a blue line lit up on the floor showing the clear path to the tour group. It pulsated forward indicating direction.

Ray gave a deep internal sigh at the sign that he'd passed without suspicion: or, at the very least, that he thought he had. He'd seemingly got off without being officially signed up for the tour, and now he was getting to go on it. But he didn't really put great importance or note on the fact that mentioning Arthur could have just put him in much more trouble than he otherwise would have been. Seeing as the raptors seemed to operate on such a need-to-know basis, and that the knowledge of one being held by an outsider was likely a bad sign to them.

Back onto the topic, Ray nodded to Doris and thanked her before walking towards the motioned door. The blue line directing him was a rather interesting touch in Ray's mind, and he went ahead and proceeded through the door anyways. He began to plan how he might try and get the information gathering done: the tour had to give off locations within the facility where personnel data had to be stored, right? And there had to be some clues of where Fortu was within the facility.

Of course, if Ray could also manage to avoid arousing any more suspicion, that would be wonderful too.

[The BranRiech]

"Yeah, Lamia diets are pretty similar to that of humans. Although we're a bit more on the carnivorous side than them, although some people think we eat things raw, like whole mice. That's all just talk." Toscha said. Realistically though, he did know of a few clans that were rumored to have done that, but it was more than looked down upon in the Lamia world. "The kitchen sounds alright, I haven't gotten anything to eat yet today anyways."

And if WIllow wanted, he could most certainly use the vending machine in the kitchen, although Toscha didn't know about it.

[Giovenith]

"Sounds good enough then. We should be able to find something."

Upon arriving at the communal kitchen, Willow immediately began to look around for an easy way to fetch food. He lived here for now, so technically he could have taken pretty much anything, but he didn't want to make a mess of things by cooking. Perhaps something from the cupboards? Or- oh! Why, there was a perfectly good glass box of what appeared to be package snacks, sitting right there, ready to go, how convenient!

"I'll get something from over there," said Willow with a satisfied smile and point at the big glass box, flying over to it and inspecting the contents. There were so many colorful, enticing packages, but a few stood out, like a small pack of wheat thins saying they were made from whole grain. Whole grain was good, it was Willow usually at anyway. He could grab a few choices to bring back to Toscha and see what he might like. But upon reaching out a hoof, Willow ran into a problem: How was this thing supposed to open?

The outside looked like it was able to come off, and Willow had previously assumed it was a door, but upon further inspection, he saw that the big lid was actually bolted shut. Strange, that couldn't be right... perhaps it really just slid right off? He attempted to grab at the edges and tug on them with a good amount of might, but the glass box stayed shut. Maybe, pushing? He flew around to the front and tried pressing his hooves against the door, and even that didn't work. There was a little flap in the bottom that did open up into the machine, but there was no way that he would have been able to stick a foreleg or wing up it and actually reach something. Whose stupid design was this?

Willow was becoming frustrated. And when a horse was frustrated, it sometimes resorted to the most instinctual way of solving things: Willow landed on the ground, turned his back to the machine, and began to slowly lift a hind leg.

[The BranRiech]

"Sure thing." Toscha grinned, assuming the Pony knew how to work a simple vending machine. He was sadly mistaken however, as Willow was contemplating it like a small kitten contemplated itself in a mirror, confused.

At first, the Lamia thought this was quite the sight, but in the fear of causing property damage, he rushed forward to stop the vending machine from being broken. "No!" He shouted, stopping feet away from them. "That's not how they work! You have to put money in one, and then make a selection. See the number pad on the side? They correspond with a selection inside, at least, I think."

Toscha had only seen vending machines in the big cities he'd visited, so mostly at the airports, and he had only a rudimentary knowledge of working one, but at least he got most of it right.

[Giovenith]

"... Oh." Willow quickly put his leg down and took a slide away from the machine, trying to appear as if he was completely ambivalent toward this new information. "Well, yes, obviously, that makes perfect sense." He gestured a foreleg to the vending machine in a presenting manner, as if it did make sense. Inside, he was feeling fairly embarrassed... there was yet another thing this world had that his didn't, met characteristically with the intention of making Willow look and feel like an idiot. Of course he wouldn't say it out loud, he was used to dealing with things internally... but still. He didn't want to be laughed at, and so far he had not (thankfully), but somehow he felt that it was only a matter of time.

"... I don't have any money from this place," he admitted, glancing downward. "There might be stuff in the cupboards, though."

[Tiltjuice]

The seagull took flight, as the sun's rays pierced the clouds and stirred up the air enough to help it keep aloft. Warmth pervaded Chrys, gliding along just underneath her skin, or so it seemed. So strange and new a feeling that Hans' words stirred in her, so different from that which had passed, centuries ago, between herself and Dia. The big man had struck sparks with her, and yet there had been times when he had been her trusted confidant as well. After time spent as partners, they'd become partners. With Hans, it was much different. Much easier; like slipping into a warm bath. And this, then, she supposed, was the first foot into the tub.

Her lean, elfin features softened. The growing heat bubbling up from Hans' words and reflecting back from his coat spoke to her on the most primal level. This wasn't at all what she expected. Easy, so easy, and so seductively, sublimely right - like the sirens of old.

"Your beliefs...they're so much a match for mine," she breathed in wonder. "How..."

Her eyes dropped for a moment to the sand, then snapped back up. Lost for words, she could only feel, in that moment, and so she did. Warmth, warmth, always warmth. The texture of his hands on hers, and the smooth surface of the delicate crystal under her fingers. The thick, soft wool draped over her arms.

"How?"

He was puzzled by her question. He knew very little about the Conservators' beliefs except that they seemed tied into Fate and Time. He'd never confirmed if it was the deities themselves or simply a philosophy. Yet how to answer her? Did she believe as he did? Had she come by her belief similarly to his own search for knowledge?

His mind thought upon his own life, prior to joining. The Thule Society, Rudolf Hess and his mentor, Professor Karl Haushofer, the Nazi fascination with the occult and Teutonic gods, and the Nazi party itself. Hans was never given a chance to choose his beliefs. They'd been chosen for him and he'd followed because that was the only way to avoid the truly dire things in life. His subsequent recruitment by Klaus had changed his life, and forged in him a deeper understanding of ancient Teutonic thought. Klaus had liberated him and simultaneously preserved him from turning into a monster far more sinister than a daemon host or agent of Chaos.

It was Klaus who taught him the truth about these beliefs. That Chaos was what it was, that gods were real but not as intrusive as people imagined, and that all the universe was governed by Fate. Not the god. The force which was woven by various gods who claimed it as their discipline, be it Fate or Plotter or a host of others from various pantheons. It was Wyrd... fate, personal destiny, that which all men are bound to unless something radical changes their course or takes them before destiny could be achieved.

These were things best discussed by a glowing fire and over mugs of hot tea. They were part of the magic of long winter nights. Kneeling on a beach wasn't conducive to such conversations. Hans' eyes met Chrys' own.

"One day, I'll tell you my story," he murmured. "It's not all beautiful. Some is shameful. Most is good. You will tell me yours, yes? We'll discover each other. But not now, and not here."

He rose, gently pulling her up with him and taking care to not allow the flower to drop.

When did the sun come out? Has the world always been this beautiful?

No. Truly, the world didn't exist until she'd stepped into it. It was a cold and barren place without her. The veracity of the moment filled his heart with a joy he'd never known could exist... she'd promised to give them a try. She wished to reciprocate his love. If she hadn't been there, Hans knew he would have run down the street yowling in joy and punching the air in triumph. He reigned himself in, however.

Barely.

His smile widened slowly, making him appear more than just a little mischievous. His hands tenderly lifted the flower from her own and he slipped it into a jacket pocket before adjusting it onto her shoulders better. Hammerspace pockets were wonderfully secure.

Mirth broke through and he impulsively plucked her from the sand, lifting her high and twirling around with her. A joyous cry broke from him to mix with his laughter. He set her down again and kissed her forehead. "I'm alive. You've breathed life back into me. I'm alive!"

Chrys yelped in surprise as she whirled in a neat half-orbit through the air. "Yes! Yes I will," she assented in a voice made higher by surprise and amusement and shared contentment. Yet for all that, she knew her past was likely as colored as his was. The childhood among people who, too often, fought and bled and broke and died. The desire to rise above that, and above those who would force others to die before their time. And so much else about her, in the nearly two millennia that she'd lived - even she was hard-pressed to remember it all. The one solid thread under it all? Stability was what she'd searched for, and it was only right that she now help Hans find it for himself.

The brush of his lips on her forehead brought her back to reality and she turned to face him, her left to his right. She batted the jacket sleeve up in the air; it arced and landed across her hair, out of the way. With a last glance down into the depths of his hammerspace pocket, she shifted and took his hand.

"You're alive, and I know where my socks are." A brilliant, flashing smile crossed her face as she slid her boots partway off to reveal the pair Hans had given her.

[Swith Witherward]

"Well from the letter he sent me, he did it for the safety of his daughter, to explore new planets, and provide better life for the lucky 10 million in his fleet."

__

"Why so long? Well the fighting took a while since assholes could just re spawn a few times. After the fight I had to help restore hell to an equilibrium state. Then after that, Superbia and I just messed around for a while.

"That sounds like him," Charumati sighed. "I honestly don't understand why he hasn't turned up here, or in Purgatory or Hell. He certainly wouldn't swap religions, and I'd know if his soul turned up in my area."

She rubbed her hands, fretting over the entire thing. Part of her was somewhat irked at Thriller for going MIA. These were the holidays. It would be their first Christmas together as a couple. How could she possibly expect the twins to not inquire about him, especially if Sapphire and the others were back? It would be impossible to restore him without his soul, but Charumati was losing hope.

"I should be going," she explained to Ms. Thriller, "because the twins will wake up soon, and I'm needed elsewhere. If Cornelius comes this way, will you tell him I'm looking for him?"

--

"Just messed around?" Xanthe furrowed her brow. Mortals did that and ended up tangled in mischief. When supernatural beings did that, things got wonky. She'd overheard what Lucius had told Ogoti, and so she was aware of the changes in Hell.

She rested her elbows on the table and leaned forward to meet Lucius' eyes. "What exactly were you two up to?"

"Yes, the straight-forward route. They are fond of visitors, and I can keep my impulses under control." Jonathan agreed still a small bit nervous, but not showing it.

He doubted that they would ever leave the place again. He knew it was possible for them to become completely self sufficient with access to many raw resources that were often scammed or stolen.

Jonathan put on his vest before cringing at the imaginary vibration in his head. The factory forwarded the info about Ray's visit, flagged because of the mention of Arthur. Data poured into his head as a complete background check was received. He rubbed his temple like he had a bad headache.

"Why did I ever think, that wiring my brain to the internet was a good idea. I gotta make the alerts less jarring." he commented and thought about what to do. Ray claimed to be an investor and did have the funding to be legit. But several details in the extensive check bothered him. He decided to just ignore it unless something suspicious occurred.

"Uh oh," Caroline paused her efforts to neaten her scarf and offered a raised eyebrow to Jonathan. "What sort of alert?"

Knowing Fortu, it could be anything from a notice to darn his socks to an epically cryptic warning from a future or past self that spelled out world demise.

"Does it have to do with Eldritch?"

Maybe their stocks had suddenly wheeled towards outstanding numbers?

He smiled at her glee his mask reflecting it with a gold charm. They suddenly vanished occupying the same rubbery seething black maelstrom that they had before, all motion and idiotic noise that over whelmed the senses. the sensation lasted for about 3 minutes and when they reappeared it was atop the Eiffel Tower overlooking Paris. a group of people surrounding them had looks of shock on their face but Aegis didnt stay long and another quick jump later they were inside the original coffer shop.

Naomi sucked in her breath the moment they appeared atop the Eiffel Tower. The view was absolutely dazzling. She cared little for the passersby or their stares. The echos of the dark voices still rumbled around her mind and she greedily drank in the contrast between brilliant bright and grim dark.

And then the moment was gone and they traveled again through that dark, depressing void and found themselves back at Tim Horton's. Naomi closed her eyes and allowed her body to adjust to the change in geographical position.

"YES!"

She flung her arms around Aegis and squeezed him in a happy hug. She absolutely approved of his methods of travel.

Naomi stepped back and tipped her chin to smile at his face (well, mask). "That was wonderful! Thank you so much for doing that!"

"I didn't say no, just stating it will be a new experience for me. I don't eat Human fruit anyways, although apples are quite good." Yuna smiled, concentrating mostly on the larger ones. Sure, the pups were adorable, but they were fragile, and Yuna didn't trust herself all that much yet to allow herself to handle something so small and helpless. The larger ones though? They were still pretty cute.

"I'll take one."

Will closed the cage and brought Yuna towards the back of the room. There were larger cages there and a large colony was being kept warm by boxes and lamps. He opened one of the little gates and gently untangled a bat from his perch.

The animal wasn't overly large. Two warm brown eyes stared into Yuna's own and then Will settled the creature on her chest. The bat flung his head over her shoulder and nestled himself closer to her body for warmth.

"He's yours. Let me know if he's too much of a hassle. We can always bring him back if so," Will smiled. "These bats... well, we breed them here... but these bats are engineered to be long-lived and intelligent companions. You'll find that they each have their own quirky personality. You can use them to send messages to other cultists, or to give you an idea of what's going on around you if you allow them aloft for a look. You just need to figure out their language."

[Primordial Luxa]

He smiled at her glee his mask reflecting it with a gold charm. They suddenly vanished occupying the same rubbery seething black maelstrom that they had before, all motion and idiotic noise that over whelmed the senses. the sensation lasted for about 3 minutes and when they reappeared it was atop the Eiffel Tower overlooking Paris. a group of people surrounding them had looks of shock on their face but Aegis didnt stay long and another quick jump later they were inside the original coffer shop.

Naomi sucked in her breath the moment they appeared atop the Eiffel Tower. The view was absolutely dazzling. She cared little for the passersby or their stares. The echos of the dark voices still rumbled around her mind and she greedily drank in the contrast between brilliant bright and grim dark.

And then the moment was gone and they traveled again through that dark, depressing void and found themselves back at Tim Horton's. Naomi closed her eyes and allowed her body to adjust to the change in geographical position.

"YES!"

She flung her arms around Aegis and squeezed him in a happy hug. She absolutely approved of his methods of travel.

Naomi stepped back and tipped her chin to smile at his face (well, mask). "That was wonderful! Thank you so much for doing that!"

"I'm glad you enjoyed the experience" he said as they walked into the shop. The universal smell of roasting herbs wafting over them as they entered. "Normally the voids not so active, I assume they were speaking up at your presence." It was strange for the various creatures and beings that existed in the beyond to take active notice of someone travelling via persona DEiMOS and it was not an incredibly safe thing either.

[Swith Witherward]

"I'm glad you enjoyed the experience" he said as they walked into the shop. The universal smell of roasting herbs wafting over them as they entered. "Normally the voids not so active, I assume they were speaking up at your presence." It was strange for the various creatures and beings that existed in the beyond to take active notice of someone travelling via persona DEiMOS and it was not an incredibly safe thing either.

"Oh?" Naomi's brow furrowed in concern. "I hope I didn't offend them by being there."

She breathed in the enticing aroma of coffee and teas, and the rich scents of baked goods caused her stomach to growl. Her little heart was troubled, however. She'd learned not too long ago that some beings just wouldn't like her. It didn't matter if she loved them or took the time to care. These creatures didn't have time for silly godlings. Swith had been very adamant about that. The entire conversation had left Naomi feeling somewhat useless.

"If they were offended, would you tell them that I'm sorry and didn't intend to intrude?" she asked Aegis. She wasn't sure who "they" even were, but it was very rude to just waltz through someone's dimension or niche without even asking them if it was alright to do so.

--

Minerva finished gathering field reports. She entered the dining room but made a beeline for the far corner where she could sit in the shadows until it was time for all to gather. Likewise, a few other cultists made their way in and sought places where they'd have presence without encouraging conversation.