TO: EVERYONE.

[bloomly]

( it's not like she means to, and certainly not like she wants to broadcast her thoughts, in the neat, curling cursive that it comes in, to people that she doesn't even know, in a place where she's fairly certain she's all alone. sure, there had been the sudden intrusion before, of words splashed on her bedsheets and the wooden walls where she sleeps--but she had figured that must have been some sort of hallucination, perhaps even magic, or worse, some sort of curse; she doesn't know anything about this place except what those here, in solvunn, have told her, and what's a halloween anyway? some sort of other curse?

or is this something different? it wouldn't be the first time the planet said things to her that she didn't understand, a cacophony of voices scrambled together: some happy, others upset, some desperate to be lost to the lifestream entirely. but this isn't gaia, and this isn't her flower garden--the cries of the planet don't reach her here, or do they? is that the meaning of all those words before?

it's late at night when her eyes close: maybe if she thinks hard enough, long enough, she can find that pull, the tug of the lifestream to draw her thoughts together with the planet beneath her. maybe she can find a way out of here. maybe there are a lot of 'maybe's. )


𝒲𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒹𝑜 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓌𝒶𝓃𝓉 𝒻𝓇𝑜𝓂 𝓂𝑒?

( the text, all loopy and warm and rounded, pops up with no discretion for who it's sent to, or why: it's just there, to everyone open to it, and repeats patiently if ignored. then, another: )

𝐻𝑜𝓌 𝒸𝒶𝓃 𝐼 𝒽𝑒𝓁𝓅?

( and, of course, there's a neat little signature at the bottom of every message: )

- 𝒜𝑒𝓇𝒾𝓉𝒽

Comments

[bloomly]

( it's funny, really: she should be more upset by the message, should be worried, perhaps even scared by such a thing. maybe she would have been, in her younger days; but now, it's almost amusing, almost like she's determined to prove whoever sent it wrong.

her lips curl into a smile, and for a moment, she concentrates: )

𝒜𝓃𝒹 𝓌𝒽𝓎 𝒾𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉? 𝒢𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝓂𝑒 𝒻𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓈𝑜𝓃𝓈, 𝑔𝑜!

- 𝒜𝑒𝓇𝒾𝓉𝒽

[fourarmedandangerous]

[Goro takes another drink at the teasing reply before he concentrates on a reply. He dislikes the insistently cheerful.]

Why do you insist on this foolishness?

[bloomly]

𝐼𝓈 𝒾𝓉 𝒻𝑜𝑜𝓁𝒾𝓈𝒽 𝓉𝑜 𝓉𝒶𝓁𝓀 𝓉𝑜 𝓎𝑜𝓊, 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓃?

[fourarmedandangerous]

I have nothing I wish to say. I wish to finish my evening libation in peace.

Whoever or whatever you think you pray to is not listening.

[Way to stick to your guns there, Goro.]

[bloomly]

𝐵𝓊𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊'𝓇𝑒 𝓁𝒾𝓈𝓉𝑒𝓃𝒾𝓃𝑔. 𝒯𝒽𝒶𝓉'𝓈 𝓈𝑜𝓂𝑒𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔.

𝒲𝒽𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊...𝓁𝒾𝒷𝒶𝓉𝒾𝓃𝑔?

( she isn't entirely sure what that means, but it must have something to do with drinking... right? )

[fourarmedandangerous]

I have no choice. Your words appear whether I wish them to or not.

Elsewhere.

[Is that what this is? An attempt to gather information about other summoned by hiding behind a call for help to a silent god? This person does not strike him as anyone from the outpost.]

[bloomly]

𝑅𝑒𝒶𝓁𝓁𝓎? 𝒪𝒽, 𝐼 𝓁𝒾𝓀𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉~

( because of course she would. harder to get ignored, this way. )

𝐼𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝓎𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝑔𝑜𝑜𝒹 𝓉𝑜 𝒹𝓇𝒾𝓃𝓀 𝒾𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝓅𝓁𝒶𝒸𝑒?

𝐼 𝒽𝒶𝓋𝑒𝓃'𝓉 𝓈𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝒶𝓃𝓎𝓌𝒽𝑒𝓇𝑒, 𝑜𝓇 𝒶𝓃𝓎𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔, 𝓎𝑒𝓉.

[fourarmedandangerous]

[The four-armed giant half-dragon realizes with a grimace he may have created a monster by letting Aerith know that.]

I do not know. I am not in "your" place.

My drink is passable.

[bloomly]

𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝓀𝓃𝑜𝓌, 𝒾𝓉'𝓈 𝓁𝑜𝓃𝑒𝓁𝓎 𝓉𝑜 𝒹𝓇𝒾𝓃𝓀 𝒶𝓁𝑜𝓃𝑒.

𝒲𝒶𝓃𝓉 𝓉𝑜 𝓅𝓁𝒶𝓎 𝒶 𝑔𝒶𝓂𝑒?

[fourarmedandangerous]

I prefer it. I do not enjoy disruptions.

[There's a notable pause before the next line of text appears; Goro is apparently weighing his options here.]

What manner of game? And what are the stakes?

[He's not agreeing to anything until he knows what he's agreeing to, but possibly it might get her out of his way, so he's willing to listen.]

[bloomly]

( oh, he's done it now. )

𝒲𝑒𝓁𝓁~ 𝒯𝒽𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝒶 𝓁𝑜𝓉 𝑜𝒻 𝒹𝒾𝒻𝒻𝑒𝓇𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝑔𝒶𝓂𝑒𝓈 𝓌𝑒 𝒸𝑜𝓊𝓁𝒹 𝓅𝓁𝒶𝓎. 𝒜𝓃𝒹 𝒾𝒻 𝓎𝑜𝓊'𝓋𝑒 𝑔𝑜𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓁𝒾𝓆𝓊𝑜𝓇, 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓃 𝓌𝑒 𝒸𝒶𝓃 𝓂𝒶𝓀𝑒 𝒾𝓉 𝒶 𝒹𝓇𝒾𝓃𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝑔𝒶𝓂𝑒!

𝒜 𝑔𝓊𝑒𝓈𝓈𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝑔𝒶𝓂𝑒, 𝓂𝒶𝓎𝒷𝑒? 𝐼 𝓈𝒶𝓎 𝓈𝑜𝓂𝑒𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒶𝒷𝑜𝓊𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒾𝒻 𝒾𝓉'𝓈 𝓉𝓇𝓊𝑒, 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒹𝓇𝒾𝓃𝓀. 𝐼𝒻 𝒾𝓉'𝓈 𝒻𝒶𝓁𝓈𝑒, 𝐼 𝒹𝓇𝒾𝓃𝓀!

( nevermind that she doesn't have anything to drink at the moment. she'll work that out later. )

𝒜𝓃𝒹 𝓌𝑒 𝑔𝑜 𝒷𝒶𝒸𝓀 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒻𝑜𝓇𝓉𝒽, 𝓈𝑜 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓈𝒶𝓎 𝓈𝑜𝓂𝑒𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒶𝒷𝑜𝓊𝓉 𝓂𝑒, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓈𝒶𝓂𝑒 𝓅𝑒𝓃𝒶𝓁𝓉𝓎. 𝐼𝓉'𝓈 𝑒𝒶𝓈𝓎, 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒾𝓉 𝑔𝑒𝓉𝓈 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒹𝓇𝒾𝓃𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔, 𝒷𝓊𝓉 𝒶𝓉 𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓈𝓉 𝒾𝓉'𝓈 𝒻𝓊𝓃, 𝓇𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉?

[fourarmedandangerous]

[Another long pause.]

Very well. Ask your first question.

[He'll drink no matter what, as it's unlikely this will have any noticeable effect on him. This is slightly less of a bother than the conversation that preceded it, at least.]

[bloomly]

( it takes awhile for her to get back to the game: mostly because she has to climb her way out of bed, creep through the cottage and rifle through cabinets, quietly, so as not to raise any suspicions; she might be 'someone wonderful' for this place, but she doesn't think it would sit well with anyone if she were caught like this.

still: mission accomplished, at least. she returns to the bundle of sheets and quilts on her bed, sits criss-cross, and wrenches the top before she continues. )

𝒪𝓀𝒶𝓎! 𝐹𝒾𝓇𝓈𝓉: 𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝒹𝑜𝓃'𝓉 𝓁𝒾𝓀𝑒 𝓉𝑜 𝒷𝑒 𝒶𝓇𝑜𝓊𝓃𝒹 𝑜𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝓅𝑒𝑜𝓅𝓁𝑒. 𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝓌𝑜𝓊𝓁𝒹 𝓅𝓇𝑒𝒻𝑒𝓇 𝓉𝑜 𝒷𝑒 𝒶𝓁𝑜𝓃𝑒, 𝒷𝓎 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇𝓈𝑒𝓁𝒻.

𝐼𝓈 𝒾𝓉 𝓇𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉?

[fourarmedandangerous]

[It's just long enough for Goro to start to believe she might have lost interest, and his mood is starting to improve, when the question finally does appear. Still, at least it's an excuse to take a drink.]

Correct. I will drink.

[No question of his own is forthcoming.]

[bloomly]

𝒴𝑜𝓊'𝓇𝑒 𝓃𝑜𝓉 𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎 𝑔𝑜𝑜𝒹 𝒶𝓉 𝒻𝑜𝓁𝓁𝑜𝓌𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓇𝓊𝓁𝑒𝓈!

[fourarmedandangerous]

[The response is almost immediate once Aerith pokes at him.]

You enjoy inserting yourself into the business of others.

[He's still drinking too.]

[bloomly]

𝒟𝒾𝓃𝑔! 𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝒸𝑜𝓇𝓇𝑒𝒸𝓉, 𝓈𝑜 𝐼'𝓁𝓁 𝒹𝓇𝒾𝓃𝓀~

𝑀𝓎 𝓉𝓊𝓇𝓃: 𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝒹𝑜𝓃'𝓉 𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓁𝓁𝓎 𝓁𝒾𝓀𝑒 𝓈𝓁𝑒𝑒𝓅𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒶𝓁𝑜𝓃𝑒.

[fourarmedandangerous]

[Goro has to think about this. It's true, he does prefer sleeping in the company of at least one of his ten wives, Shokan beauties all, as deadly as they are beautiful. So by that metric, yes he does hate sleeping alone. On the other hand, the only other company here he could really expect is humans and he finds that thought incredibly distasteful, and would rather sleep alone in that case. On the other other hand (he has four hands, it's fine), if he agrees, he gets to take another drink. So sure, let's go with that.

It never occurs to him that maybe Aerith has Goro completely outmatched here.]

Correct. I will drink.

You...enjoy the company of dogs.

[Sorry Cloud. How...many rounds did they agree to?]

[bloomly]

𝒟𝑜𝑔𝓈??

( well...sure, who doesn't? that one seems unfair but she lets it slide. )

𝒜 𝒹𝓇𝒾𝓃𝓀 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓂𝑒!

𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝒹𝑜𝓃'𝓉 𝒽𝒶𝓋𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝓎𝑜𝓃𝑒 𝒾𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝓅𝓁𝒶𝒸𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓌𝑜𝓊𝓁𝒹 𝒸𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝒶 𝒻𝓇𝒾𝑒𝓃𝒹.