AUDIENCE FOR: Lup

[guestservices]

mostly void, partially stars.

❤

Comments

week 3, monday

[guestservices]

[ ring ring!

shadows coalesce beside lup, and out pops aquila! they're back to normal, no more monstery features, and adjusting their gloves when they step out.

there's a beat, and - ] Oh, that's what smelled so good. G'morning, Lup, lady with the best tips. You need help, or just come to chat?

[evocationary]

[thank god for no more monster features. she smiles a bit at them when they wander out, sitting on the counter.]

Nah, just paying my weekly dues. I'm uh, in better mental shape, so you know.

[she tucks her hair behind her ear.] You want to eat first before I drag you to the spa?

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[ genuinely, and warmly: ] 'm really glad to hear it.

[ they watch her for a moment, and then snap their fingers. ] Tell you what. Let's bring it upstairs? We can split it, you gotta eat your hard work.

Besides. Think the drink is definitely meant for the spa, yeah? [ mimosas... treat yourself... ]

[evocationary]

[she looks amused.]

I ate while I made you all food, but - sure, I'll take a piece of bacon. [treat yourself...] Beam me up, Scotty.

[guestservices]

No idea what that means, but I think I get your drift.

[ but, they nod! and wave a hand to put the food in a mysterious shadow hammerspace that i'm not thinking too much about right now where it's safe and stays hot. the mimosa, however, comes with them as they make a shadow portal, and off they go!

the spa is very, very nice. there's soft music playing, the air is nice and warm... the vibes are immaculate. they tilt their head towards lup. ] Where to?

[evocationary]

[she mutters sleeve of holding as they put the food away, and then they're off!]

I don't know, maybe just a couch or lounge-y thing to start with. I kind of want to put color in my hair later. We'll see.

[guestservices]

[ this reference... is also lost on them, apparently but they duck their head anyway, coming to flop over on one of the chaise lounges, drink in hand. they look a little like they're living their best life, actually, comfortably sprawling for a moment. ]

What color? [ a thoughtful noise ] 'm pretty good with hair.

[evocationary]

[she looks so amused when they sprawl like that.]

Oh, red, obviously. [she scoots over to sit down next to them. she absolutely manspreads on a chaise lounge.] Maybe some orange and yellow. I have a brand.

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[ they allow her space to manspread so they can both manspread and take up a stupid amount of space. they lazily wave their free hand to magic shadow up a second mimosa and offer it to lup. ]

Streak of fire, huh? I like it. [ teasing. ] Very rebellious.

[evocationary]

[her ear flicks happily when she takes the mimosa.]

Yay. [she hums, taking a sip.] It's true! I'm uh, I'm very rebellious. It's a prereq for twins.

[guestservices]

So I've heard.

Twins can be right pains in the asses. [ they say this very seriously, nodding, and then, a little more playful; ] Heard this story about a couple of twins that took up a job with their dad once just to take all his money. Cause he was a huge dick.

[evocationary]

[she laughs.]

Wow, sneaky. [another sip.] I heard a story about some twins that'd pretend to be one kid split into two by some magic curse, and the only way they could be cured was by a lot of gold or whatever they were selling at the time.

[guestservices]

[ oh, they make an amused noise. ]

Wow, sneaky. [ in mirror of what she says. ] Did it work?

[evocationary]

Like, half the time. Which is still a passing grade, probably.

[guestservices]

Hey, half the gold's still half the gold.

[ they laugh, sipping from their drink. ] Just pickpocketed all of mine.

[evocationary]

That's way more efficient, but alas. I'm a wizard, not a rogue.

[stretches absently.] Hey, but --

[and she gets interrupted! forces stardust on you congratulations.

you settle down in front of a fireplace in a room that feels slightly cold and empty, despite the roaring fire. a man in a pressed white button-down shirt, black waistcoat, and cravat trails after you as you pick up the pomeranian practically yelping for your attention. you give maus a scrub down, cooing at the puppy.

you talk, a little, about your recent visit to the graveyard. they're all unhappy down there, like you knew they would be. you seem to be familiar with this man, considering you just crawl right into his lap, and he wraps his arms around you like nothing. he's cold and stiff, literally, but that's not really his fault. and then, reluctantly, you show the man in front of you the progress of your hand under your gloves.

"What's happening to us?" he asks, vaguely horrified, as you show him, and you hide your face. you don't know. but you have to keep going. and then, you insist:

"The fact that - we helped bring them here in the first place, Miles, I'm not going to turn around and ask them to save us. We have to - do something to appease the UWU so it doesn't take all of us out. I'll see what I can do."

he doesn't like that. "What can we even do to appease it now? We already essentially sold ourselves to it... You are not going back to speak to it alone."

and you don't like that. "You can't stop me," you tell him, roughly, and it turns into an argument.

... he talks you down. and you sigh out, "Logical. Logical as always, babe."

but you know that's not going to be the end of it. you know you have to do more. you just won't tell him.

and she just, takes a deep breath, and puts her drink down.]

[guestservices]

[ ... oh.

they're quiet, for a moment afterwards - white knuckling the couch, actually, when the memory fades.

... but. they take a deep breath, too, and then exhale it out. ]

... your last experience, huh. [ their voice is quiet, when they speak, a little less rough than usual. ] You kept fighting with it?

[evocationary]

Yeah. [she says, after a moment.] Of course I did.

I got my butt handed to me for the first time in about a hundred years, but I wasn't about to let it win.

[guestservices]

Attagirl.

[ good. they've really come to expect nothing less from lup, at this point - there's steadiness and resolve in the way they say it. ] Get knocked down, get back up again, every time. Kinda what I've come to get from you.

... specially when you've got good friends around like that guy, too. [ with a little dip of their head, as if gesturing towards the memory of miles. ]

[evocationary]

[a deep breath, as she shakes her hands out a bit.]

He's a good man. [...] There were a lot of good people on that station. I don't know if I would've gotten through it without his help. The support system I had there - most of them came here. Harrow, Molly, Yuri, Sheila.

... Not Zixi, though. And I hope he's safe somewhere.

[guestservices]

[ ... ]

I hope so, too.


[ they open their mouth to start to say something else, in response, but they don't get the chance. there's a shattering bright wave of stardust, and then... none of the voices are familiar. the sights of it - the people in it are shadowed. just there enough.

[ Standing in a little cave at the end of a conflict, you are perfectly calm.

You glance to your left. Someone stands beside you; you say something to him quietly, and he nods. To you, he feels familiar. Trustworthy. Important. He nods, and goes to take care of something up in the loft area of this little cave, and he's the only person you'd trust to do so.

...In the meantime.

In front of you are fifty some odd bandits, captured and defeated - their leader at the end of the line. They've caused trouble beyond measure, lately - for you, for the people in the closest village, innocent civilians - and on top of that, they have information. It's information you need, and you will have it.

You tilt your head, glancing across the group of bandits, and when you speak, your voice is calm. Casual, even. Relaxed. "I only have one question. How many entrances and exits do you have in these underground rats' nests? Please be aware of your current situation."

You smile, but it's not a real smile, as you think about the villagers nearby, suffering. "Let's do it this way. Starting from the first person on the west side - behead him on the spot if he refuses to talk. When the first person is finished, the next can add more details. If one can't add anything more, then, that's too bad. The ones at the front of the line may have some advantage - let's start. Counting to three - not talking will result in being cut down. Talking nonsense will result in being cut down."

You can almost feel the current of fear in the room tick up a notch, and you keep your arms behind your back, and you watch. One of the men on your side steps forward, weapon in hand, and the first bandit looks stunned - he is indecisive, looking at his leader.

You count. "One. Two."

You make a downward, decisive gesture with your hand - and your ally slashes through the bandit's neck. Your ally has some difficulty - the bandit's vocal chords don't initially split, and the bandit's bloodcurdling scream ricochets through the mountain as it takes a fully powered strike to behead him.

The second bandit shakily points to an underground tunnel entrance right behind you, as his friend's head rolls in front of his feet. You don't have time for this. You click your tongue.

"Nonsense. Can I not see it for myself?" Lightly, casually. Down goes another, this time smoothly, head separated from neck in the blink of an eye.

One by one, the remaining bandits drop information. The third man squeals like a rat, dropping several tunnel locations; you work your way methodically down the line, until you've removed the heads of ten or so men, stubborn to their ends, and left the rest trembling as they're trussed up to be thrown in prison. When you reach the leader of the bandits, he straightens and looks you in the eye.

You walk over casually, arms behind your back, as if this was a stroll through a garden instead of an interrogation, as if you walked through flowers, instead of a river of blood of your own creation. (And truthfully, a part of you is shocked. A part of you is too tired for the violence that has to come from this moment, but you think about the village, and the you think about the people that you've sworn to protect, the position you uphold, and you know that violence is what will clear this rat's nest for good.)

The leader clears his throat. He tries to be proud. "I used to hear people say that your elegance was unparalleled. I did not expect that you'd be well versed even in torture methods for interrogation; truly, the more talents, the better."

Amused, you reply, "There's no need for flattery. The main activity in war is to slay people, isn't it? I didn't lock you in a dark room. Didn't place you on a nail bed, nor did I ask you to sit on a tiger's chair. The words torture to interrogate - I don't dare to accept them."

The bandit leader's eye twitches.

You know there's more to this interrogation than sixty-four tunnels and sixty-four entrances. You know there's more. There's no way these bandits could have gotten access to all of the supplies they had, without help from the inside. That is what you're interested in.

The blade lowers beside the man's neck, and your smile, cold and ruthless, remains, as you step in front of him and lower your voice. It's ice.

"If you have nothing to say, you can accompany your men as well."

The leader clenches his teeth - and you know that you have him.

when the stardust fades, aquila's sitting straight up from their manspread, holding onto their glass. ]

[evocationary]

[ah.

a beat, and then:]

Wow. Bet Royce would like you.

[guestservices]

[ they



just laugh? they laugh, shocked, surprised, and shake their head, hand under the veil to cover their face, and just stay like that for a second. ]

Royce?

[evocationary]

[she makes a face.]

Another Avatar. He's a dick.

[guestservices]

Oh.

[ there's a beat.

and then, muffled, hand still over their face: ]

... was a dickish part of my life. Long time ago. Not - [ ... ] Not exactly something I'm proud of.