AUDIENCE FOR: Lup

[guestservices]

mostly void, partially stars.

❤

Comments

[evocationary]

Yeah, I know.

[she puts the violin in her lap.] Thanks for humoring me, though. I didn't realize how much I missed playing.

[absently plucks some more notes. the room sways a bit around her, and she closes her eyes.]

[guestservices]

A lot of people seem to think I'm humoring them lately by abiding by basic requests. [slightly amused, but also a bit perplexed.] It's not a big deal. It's important to you, isn't it?

[evocationary]

I meant more uh, more listening to me play rather than giving me the thing, but I'm always unsure on what you're allowed to give out.

[an ear flick.] Anyway. Yes. It is.

[guestservices]

I like it. The song was really beautiful. [an ear flick of their own.] And you play well. You've been at it for a while?

[evocationary]

Yep. Fifty or so years? Maybe, uh. Maybe... less. I can't remember, the cycles started to blur together a bit.

[guestservices]

[hm.]

The cycles? Like...life cycles?

[evocationary]

Huh? Oh, no. No, I mean, um, like... I was on a ship, and every year it'd reset us back to what we were physically at the start of our journey. Did a hundred of 'em.

Long story.

[guestservices]

[...she will get the sense they are squinting under their veil.]

Why are there multiple of you that have gone through this shit?

[evocationary]

[she gives them a STARTLED look.]

-- Who else has? [probably someone really obvious but listen she's drunk.]

[guestservices]

I don't know if it's exactly the same, but there's at least two of you who have gone through some weird reset stuff. You'll have to find them and ask them yourselves though. I don't think it's my place to say.

[evocationary]

Ughhh. I guess.

[lays on the floor.]

[guestservices]

[there she goes. they stay on the piano bench, looking down at the puddle of lup.]

I thought you liked talking to people.

[evocationary]

I do. This is detective work. I'm lazy, you understand.

[guestservices]

I don't know if I've ever been lazy in my life, actually. [haha.]

[evocationary]

I could see it. Someone has to pick up the slack in the universe.

[guestservices]

If it's not me, then who else? And I kinda like keeping busy.

[evocationary]

Keeps all the bad thoughts out of your head. [yawn.] I feel it. I was like that.

I guess I'm still like that. Just feels uh, different, these days.

[guestservices]

I didn't say it was like that, you know. [they don't entirely deny it either though.]

How's it different?

[evocationary]

Shh. Projecting. [she hums. and then:] ... I don't know. It just feels - I've been in this circuit for, um... seven months? Nine? I don't, um. It's been a long time since I've not been in one of these or in some sort of mortal peril. So it feels... different.

[guestservices]

I also didn't say you were wrong. [. . .]

...the bad things in your head are different than your usual bad things then, and you can't exactly get away from them because the situation's still the same. So it's harder to actually know how to replace them. That kind of different?