sonnestark | aefenglom: ic contact

[Jasper decides to answer her messages - all three of them - a good few weeks after his public address. Hello? Are you well? Do you wish to talk? Nothing quite like it, perhaps. He has forgotten how such charades of friendship began - but he sure knows how they end. His voice is at once cold, polite, tired and intrigued.]

You keep trying to contact me. Is there something you want?

[To be perfectly honest, she's surprised to hear back from him at all. Three messages might have been excessive, but her own experience had been so violent and viscerally unpleasant that she couldn't help worrying about others, people she knew to be unbonded or otherwise on their own. Jasper hadn't been the only person she had reached out to, but he was absolutely the one who required the most persistence. No surprise there.

And of course, he immediately asks if there's something she wants. The choice of wording isn't an accident, she thinks. She's only been able to pick it up in bits and pieces during their previous conversations; he is always polite and forthright, and doesn't waste time on sentiment or small-talk, but it's more than a disdain for nonsense. He seems to genuinely believe that people are only likely to show an interest in one another if they think they have something to gain.

The sad thing is, even she has to admit that his stance on such things is true more often than not. It isn't for her— but she's certainly been on the receiving end.

She exhales slowly, relieved to hear from him regardless of that enforced distance in his voice.]

I wanted to know that you were alright. We arrived here at the same time— I know I don't need to tell you know long it's been.

[Nearly two months. The longest it's safe to go without bonding is three, supposedly, and even that may be pushing it.]

I'm... not sure what sort of challenges unbonded witches might face, but I thought if it was anything even a little like what I've been dealing with, I should check in. It's a difficult time for all of us newer Mirrorbound at the moment.

[Gentle and inquisitive without rudeness. For most it would be difficult to fight back against her words and arguments, but Jasper has never considered himself alike others. His voice remains cold. His distance both vocal and mental. Politeness is maintained though honestly he nauseates over the matter. Her affection for love and friendship - and her dreams of befriending him in some fashion - it's all very droll.]

Difficult. You apply that word too liberally. I find these months simple even with a variety of challenge between the days.

[He sounds bored, confident in his skill. Her worry is a waste of both their time and energy.]

But from the sounds of it, you are finding them a burden?

I don't think it's too liberal.

[There's a hard edge to her voice as she responds; she's not quite offended by his dismissal, but she won't have him invalidating her feelings on the matter. Just because he doesn't think it's troubling doesn't mean that others won't.

She huffs softly, exhaling.]

But yes, I'm not ashamed to admit that they've been painful.

[She had been bedridden for days, despite having what she considered to be a high threshold for pain. It had been a sobering experience.]

I suppose it's different for witches than it is for monsters, but there's still reason for concern. I know I don't need to remind you of the potential for danger.

[They're on their own.

Cloud's not exactly aware of what it is that means the natives are affected by Morgana's spell, what it means that the Mirrorbound aren't- or, honestly, even the distinction between the two. It's happened fast. Inconceivably so, really- all he's really aware of is that a good three quarters of everyone that was able to fight now isn't- and that rough figure has swiftly turned into something more like nine tenths with the arrival of the necromancers on the other side.

Not good.
...He's aware of Dorchacht. While he wasn't around at the time of the city's liberation, he'd done enough jobs there to get a sense of what was going on. Some place, he imagined. Even less friendly to outsiders than Aefenglom, but getting better. Some change of management. The stories indicated Dorchacht's fall worked out for the better. That the populace was happy. ...Something he'd doubted, if anything, because in his own experience, things like that rarely went without any hitches. Of course people, somewhere'd be pissed.

It's only really now he realizes how pissed.

As the corpse of a bear-man launches itself at him (...He's seen this guy before. Some ranger, missing, right?) with burning eyes, razor teeth and sharp claws, he's able to counter. The Beastlord is off his back in a motion too fast to conceivably see, and the slab of stained bloodied metal drinks again.

The creature barely makes a noise. Even as Cloud, from his initial parry, whirls and hacks at it in mid-air, he can see the bear Turnskin's mouth open, but no sound comes out. Sticky, old, congealed blood erupts from the thing's mouth in barely-liquid blobs, splattering on the asphalt in thick, heavy bursts.

A final blow launches the creature a good 4 foot away, and he has to check himself. Just to see that the old, dead blood that the creature hacked up wasn't anything alike what the shades left behind.

Finding, whatever it was, that he's more or less unmarred, he turns his gaze down the street.

...That woman.]

Hey!

[He's running toward her. Shit- there's more things. Harpies, probably. ...Once, anyway. Like the bear Turnskin, more corpse than actual living thing- their wings rotted to mostly bone.

They're closer to her than he is.]

Watch it!

[How quickly the situation had deteriorated. Karin doesn't know what the make of the spell that had taken hold of so many of the locals, and all of her experience with Dorchacht is second-hand at best, but it doesn't matter. What she does or doesn't know is irrelevant now that they're facing a very real and growing threat, and she knows that not all Mirrorbound can protect themselves quite as well as she can.

She'll fight, not only in self-defense, but to aid those in the city who cannot aid themselves, as well as protect the city itself.

She's currently locked in combat with what had once been a harpy— a mirror of what she herself is becoming, red hair now becoming intermingled with bright plumage and new but steadily growing wings unfolding from her back as she parries an incoming blow, her footwork careful and precise as she quickly deflects another strike and thrusts forward. She clearly has some experience with the rapier she wields, and a carefully-aimed swing catches the harpy across its throat and ends things quickly, sending it to the ground with a screech followed by silence.

She has a moment to catch her breath, and so she does exactly that, rolling a shoulder back to loosen up her swordarm. What she doesn't see is there's three more harpies swooping towards her from behind to avenge their fallen sister— until Cloud's voice catches her attention. She turns sharply on her heel, raising her blade just in time to deflect an incoming blow from one of the airborne harpies' talons.]

Thanks!

[And, considering there's three of these things and only two of them—]

Care to join me?

[She grunts, pushing back against the harpy's taloned foot to gain some distance, only to quickly backstep and parry another incoming blow. Her reflexes are good, sharp, but that won't help her for long when she's severely outnumbered, and has none of her old sword magic available to her.]

[Shit, he's not going to make it in time-

He's running forward about as fast as he can, and even with the benefit of his tail providing so much more balance than what is usually afforded to a clunky two-legged creature hoofing it and their running being hindered by the act of staying upright too, he can't outpace a harpy.

They're going to get her. She's standing and fighting, which... well, he'd expect, but he's unsure what kind of sword that even is. (What can be said? It's not like the army was in the habit of using them. Before that? Nibelheim wasn't exactly the kind of place to have anything but guns for monster disposal. Therefore the rapier, to him, looks insignificant. Like it'd snap on one of the creatures just as easily as maiming any of them, and he's fully prepared to launch the chained greatsword at one of them and hope, it's only actually looking that causes him to cease. She's...

...Okay.
One down.

He comes to a stop by her, and raises his sword to deflect another Harpy's dive.

One, two...
Three? Yeah, three.]

Don't have a choice.

[Charming! Some time ago, he'd have left it as that. But... he should adjust. He knows it.]

I mean-

[Another dive. This time with claws. Shit. Deflected, again, but that was closer.]

I mean, stay behind me. Don't want you hurt.

[Charming is right, and she resists the urge to wrinkle her nose in reply, though the initially curt response isn't entirely unlike something Yuri might have said when they had first met one another. Those were circumstances somewhat like these— dire, dangerous, and violent.

She huffs a breath in reply, but another harpy shrieks and dives towards her in hopes of catching her while she's distracted by Cloud. It almost works, but not quite, and Karin's quick reflexes work in her favor as she gives a sudden swing upwards and slices cleanly through one of the harpy's clawed feet, relieving it of two of its talons without really meaning to.

Well, she'll take it.]

I'm not standing behind anyone!

[She was a lieutenant, thank you very much, and has no intention of letting anyone else take a blow for her.]

We fight side-by-side!

[This is getting ridiculous. The burden should not be on him to go about texting all his acquaintances to see if he's gotten something delivered to him that belongs instead to them; why that onus rests in his hands in a point of contention, perhaps flared by a tinge of buried pride, because it represents only wasted time and effort for a man so usually introverted.

But he goes through his list of people he knows, one by one, to see if they recognize a certain sword that he's found in his care. The list isn't a long one, naturally--it never would have been, with a man like Sephiroth--but it is a tiring task when he doesn't want to always humor conversation, and conversation always seems to be expected after a random text out of the blue.

And yet here he is again, sending Karin one that he hopes should be the end of it.]

Is this yours?

[Attached is an image of a sword that might seem rather familiar to her. At the moment, however, Sephiroth can only hope that's the case.]

[Considering how reticent he is, Karin is surprised to receive a message from Sephiroth in the first place. They see each other here and there, meet in passing quite regularly, but he's never been one for casual conversation— those they've had have often been straight to the point and hinged on their shared experiences, but he was the sort to dismiss pleasantries. As such, she's not quite sure what to expect when she takes up her watch and opens his message, but it's certainly not the image he's sent her.

Oh.]

I think so. That is, in a manner of speaking, yes.

[It hadn't always belonged to her, but in the absence of its previous owner, she can't think of anyone else who could lay claim to it now. Besides, there's no mistaking it. She knows that gilded hilt well.]

This delivery system really leaves a lot to be desired.

[It’s good that his search ends here, he thinks. No more texts flung wide in hopes of finding the owner of this mystery sword — it’s a mystery no longer. It belongs to her (“in a manner of speaking”) and her recognition is the end of it, or will be, with its impending return.]

More than that. If it had landed in the care of a stranger, you might not have seen it again.

[If this happened to him and, say, Masamune, he cannot fathom how agitated he would have been.]

I assume you want it back.

If you wouldn't mind, yes.

[She already has Durandal, so she doesn't even know that she'll use this, but... it was clearly here for her. It meant something, even if the sentiments attached to it weren't all pleasant.]

I can come pick it up whenever it's convenient, or I could meet you somewhere, if that's easier.

[They don't know each other quite well enough for her to be inviting him to the house, especially when she has a very private roommate whose space she respects.]

[He doesn't expect an invite to anywhere in particular, honestly, so in the end, it's fine. Sephiroth already had a mind to invite her over, anyhow. Barring... Yazoo sometimes being present (and even then), it's a quiet household, kept clean and without incident.

Easy enough for Karin to meet him there to pick up what rightly belongs to her.]

If you have time this evening, stop by where I live.

[Insert the address here.]

I won't be busy. [Unfortunately.]

Thank you for reaching out to me. I'll be along this evening, then.

[Her evenings do tend to be relatively free unless she's found a job to commit herself to, and so she doesn't have to do any rearranging to make herself available. Even if she had, she would have done it readily— she's inconvenienced him enough already by his having to track down the sword's owner, and there's a certain degree of anxiety involved, as well. She hasn't seen that sword in a long while, but seeing it in person will make certain things feel more real.

It's early evening when she arrives at the address she'd been given, knocking lightly before she proceeds to wait on the doorstep with a small, white box between her hands. A small token of her appreciation seemed appropriate, and to be honest, there's a part of her that hopes it detracts some from the memories of that full moon they'd spent hunting together.

She's been having some trouble shaking them, herself.]

[He doesn't make her wait, ever the punctual one even when it comes to opening the door for a visitor. It swings open, and there Sephiroth stands, great black wings pressed to his back, hair tied back in a simple ponytail which seems to tame the protrusion of dark feathers still interwoven in the silver. It lends him a more casual appearance, but that much has been unavoidable as of late -- his SOLDIER uniform is well beyond the capability of being worn, what with the protrusion of his wings.

It's been a while. It's good to see her, he thinks, as though she is one of the few acquaintances he cares to see again in this place.]

Punctual, as to be expected. [Hi. That's his hello. His gaze falls upon the white box in her hands, even as he steps back to allow her in.] ...You didn't have to bring anything.

[Her own changes have developed significantly since they last saw one another for any length of time— her wings are fully grown now, flightfeathers and all, brilliant crimson and folded comfortably against her back. She's starting not to notice the talons anymore, although the red and white tailfeathers have a habit of getting in the way. Altering her wardrobe to suit was an ever-evolving adventure these days, it seemed, but she's almost sure she's reaching the point where there will be little left to change before too long.

It seems strange to see him with his hair pulled back, but she imagines he must be struggling with many of the same inconveniences she is. Feathers are difficult to tame, and of course nothing either of them used to wear will do them much good anymore. Still, even like this, he has a stern and commanding sort of presence. The military is in his very bones.

She smiles just a touch sheepishly as she steps over the threshold, offering him a quick nod as she does so before turning to face him.]

It's nothing much, just a small show of my appreciation. Unless you don't like scones, and then I suppose it's not much of a 'thank you,' but— [Look, it doesn't really matter what's in the box, she reminds herself.] I wanted to. It's good to see you again.

HELP ME

Edited 2020-12-07 13:08 (UTC)

i think i'm getting married?

maybe

what do i wear

i dont wanna wear a suit i hate that shit karin help me

[It really was only a matter of time before she got a message like this, wasn't it.]

Are you talking about getting bonded?

I just wore my regular clothes.

yeah i think thats what its called

did you change your name

[Oh my God?]

She took mine.

[Oh fuck he was actually kinda joking about it but shit. Shit.]

you think i can just take alices then? yuri elliot.

maybe i can do a combo last name

elliot-hyuga

hyuga-elliot

can i just drop a last name all together this is stupid

[She's definitely leading him on here, but it's too entertaining not to, especially when he starts spiraling like this.]

You can do whatever you want, it's a personal choice! Maybe Alice wants to take yours.

[She'll relent, though— a little.]

It's definitely a big committment, but it isn't really a wedding, you know? Lightning and I aren't married, we're friends.

[He is gullible as hell sometimes, Karin, be gentle with him. ]

guess thats a thing we need to talk about

but what do i wear

[Oh, she knows. It's one of her favorite parts of being friends with him.]

That really depends on you. This means a lot to you, right? Bonding is a necessity for everyone here, but Alice is special to you.

[Her differences are easy to note — the grand splay of crimson wings compared to what he had seen last time, just freshly blood-coated limbs sprouting from the blades of her back. It suits her, he thinks, perhaps more than his own wings suit him; but his thoughts regarding wings, in general, are relatively complicated, given all that he knows of them on Gaia.

She even has tail feathers, which blessedly he has avoided… for now. He knows it’s a matter of time, and this thought sticks so brightly in his mind that he cannot help but remark on them, even though he lacked any prompting.]

You look different. You have a tail.

[Tail… feathers.]

That is to say, it’s been a while. [Maybe that’s what he should have said, but. Ah, well. Sephiroth doesn’t linger on the intricacies of conversation, which paths he should take and which he should abandon, and instead moves things along by grasping the sides of the scones’ box she’s brought along with her.]

I’ll eat them. [The scones. Food wasted is a shame.] Thank you. Come in.

[He turns, then, leading her inside once the door is shut neatly behind them. The house is all very rather spartan, indeed, almost no real sign of Yazoo, who has been oddly absent as of late. (He should check on him, shouldn’t he?)]

My… [uuuuh… fragment of himself? That sure isn’t something he needs to get into right now.] —brother is not here at the moment, which gives us the house to ourselves. Not that much space is needed to return your blade.

[A blade which rests quite nearly on the coffee table in the middle of the living room, which is exactly where he leads her.]

yeah she is

just never saw myself married

or bonded

....im nervous

Just be yourself. That's the Yuri she likes, after all.

[It's the one Karin had fallen for, too. That was... so awkward, now, especially since she'd confessed to him not long ago, from his perspective.]

maybe

maybe she just likes the hero guy and im not always that guy you know

[HE IS INSECURE. What does he do with this feeling, it is unfamiliar.]

You know that's not true. She's crazy about you, Yuri.

[Just like it's been made more than clear, time and time again, just how deep Yuri is in over her.]

You both only have eyes for each other. That's... it's really special.

Karin will find a soft package in her mailbox, wrapped in brown paper. Inside are a pair of red legwarmers, compatible for either human or harpy legs.

Also included is a small bag of fresh baked snacks, and a postcard-sized watercolor of a tabletop with a tea set and snack tray, writing on the back in a neat script:

Happy Holidays

- Ferran

[ A package for Karin is left outside her door in brightly-wrapped paper and a big red bow. Inside she'll find a thick, warm coat specially crafted to accommodate for her wings. It's made out of soft fur and accented with bright red feathers and there's an enchantment rune etched into the metal of the clasp at the throat that holds a spell for warmth.

Enclosed is a small note that reads, ]

Something to help keep you warm in the months to come. It's not quite the same as the comfort you have offered me, but I hope it brings you a smile all the same. Happy Modranicht.
~ Yona

[There is a package for her to find! Inside is a wrapped package of homemade shortbread cookies alongside a wrapped giftbox in festive red. Inside is a simple crystal hairpin with a note that says it'll grant the user a touch of good fortune and luck. There's a note too!]

Happy Modranicht, Karin!

-Sora

[Her face colors just slightly at the mention of her tail— of course, there's nothing subtle about the tailfeathers themselves, but she's still getting used to having them. They get in the way more often than not, so far.]

This place has been one surprise after another, with all of the changes.

[And everything else. Still, as far as changes went, there were some things she expected— wings and feathers, largely— while others she decidedly had not. The teeth had been... challenging, to say the least.

She'd rather not revisit that.

She smiles again as he takes the box from her, giving a nod of approval, glad that the small offering has been well-received as the door closes behind them.]

I didn't realize your brother was here— in Aefenglom, that is. [Or even that he had a brother, but it's not like they've talked a whole lot about their personal lives.] That's nice— I'm glad to hear you have someone.

[It's awfully lonely when you don't.]

Edited 2020-12-19 19:06 (UTC)

[that is a lot of nice-looking packages sitting on Karin's doorstep already! it suddenly makes Styx a lot more self-conscious about his rather botched wrapping job, but there really isn't any time to go back and fix it now! besides...he'd really rather do it like this than give it to his friend in person. he's just too shy about seeing her reaction (and potential disappointment), especially after the beautiful gift he'd already received from her.

(he's wearing it now...it's warm.)

the gift he's left waiting patiently with the others is twofold: a regular looking package, and a pastry box containing the closest approximation to a Black Forest cake he could find in a universe without Germany. it's really good, he and Aerith can attest to that.

inside the more giftly box is a gorgeous set of jewelry, multiple pieces wrought in delicate gold and set with gemstones the same color as her eyes. eye-catching though they may be, many of the shapes are odd and completely inappropriate for most accessory types - until one realizes that they've been created specifically with harpies in mind, meant to adorn their wings.

Karin is an accomplished warrior and a skilled fighter (and a really cool bird, now) but she's still a woman. he thinks that maybe she needs to remember that hasn't changed even while so much of herself has, and it's why the other item in his gift package is a simple spa kit, presented in a decorative wooden box.

soaking salts, exfoliating cream, one of those half-useless little headbands...it was all there. he'd hesitated upon choosing the set which had contained nail stuff but then doubled down on it (after making sure it would both work and look nice on bird appendages) after some consideration. because you know what? those parts of Karin were pretty too. they should be treated just as nicely as the rest of her.

of course, there's a hand-drawn Modranicht card tucked between all of this as well. it's a fairly unskilled depiction of Styx's own roof, actually, covered in a heavy snowfall as the lights from within his friend's little roost glow with a festive warmth. holidays inside and out...he'd thought it was pretty neat.]

[Meanwhile, this guy cannot pick up on context clues on when to shut up...shocking.]

i guess, never thought i'd end up like this.

almost married.

i aint wearing a tux though i draw the line.

[So in other words, nothing has changed!]

To be honest, I don't think I can even imagine you in a tux. It wouldn't be very 'Yuri' of you.

But hey, I don't think any of us thought we would end up where we are now. Even before Aefenglom was part of the equation.

[On the day of the holiday, a plate of homemade cookies and a sample of herbal tea mysteriously appears on her doorstep. The wrapping is decorated with a fresh lily flower (actually a Fae magic product, designed to fade away from existence in a few hours) and a ribbon. The attached handwritten note reads as follows:]

Happy Modranicht! Let’s have another great year here in Aefenglom!

M⚜️

[On the last day of Modranicht, Karin receives a doorstep present wrapped in...several horrendously bright scraps of fabric tied together. The note on it might explain why, at least, considering who it's from:

I sometimes have a hard time figuring out a good middle ground between fashion and practical, so I thought I'd help you out with that~

~Momo

Inside the package is a long black coat with a somewhat military look to it and lots of pockets on the inside, but in a slightly more modern, stylised cut. The buttons are embossed with flowers and the lining and major stitching of the coat is a shade of red that plays well off her hair colour.]

aefenglom: ic contact

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price of revolution → uninvited guests → battle on the streets

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text; un: sephiroth

text; un: nibelung

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action!

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modranicht

Happy Modranicht!

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Modranicht gift

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