appeale | ( KENOS ) COMMUNION.

MENTAL ATMOSPHERE

There is a layer of static that blankets any communion with Rudbeckia—an all-encompassing anxiety, so much that it often muffles any other feeling to be found in her. You have the strange sense of holding something small and frail in your hands: a bird, or a rabbit, carefully keeping itself still even as you can feel its panicked heartbeat thrumming throughout its entire body. At times, you hear your own voice reverberate, but it comes back colder, sharper than you meant it to be.

ASPECT: Stargazer
COMPATIBLE WITH: Exalt, Advocate
REPELLED BY: Iconoclast

Edited 2023-09-28 00:39 (UTC)

[ Dimitri reaches out very tentatively and guarded. It's... hesitant, more than anything. A touch of sorrow. ]

May I speak to you? I'll understand if you would prefer not to.

[ — the point where Communion violently begins is born from the sense of intimate connection developed between two individuals.

It is very obviously a burning, bright thing from Set, whose mind scatters into the corners of those he has forged some sort of companionship with — for duty, for responsibility, for fun, for solemn vow. What arrives is the briefest sense of rising disorientation, woven through with a burst of wrath and grief so white-hot that it might char flesh from bone within seconds, shot through with rapture and the whiplash of love. It rises like a dying, murderous sun ( like Meridian ) — stifling and acute and suffocating — only to be tempered within seconds, by the cool, crisp wash of the dark sea ( like Zenith ), tempered and soothed with all edges laid flat once more.

The Communion plunges into quiet and calm, like a great, purring beast, and ends as abruptly as it began. ]

[ The Communion starts as things often do when Gen is involved -- roughly, abruptly, and unceremoniously. Ruby doesn't even get the basic courtesy of a warning. There's just the sensation of her attention being requested, like the sharp rap of knuckles at a door, followed immediately by the equivalent of the door being kicked down the instant she unlocks it. Gen barges in with all the good manners of a loan shark looking to collect what he's owed. ]

Where are you.

[ He's angry, she might note. Though -- not at her. That distinction is important. Gen's very presence across this psychic connection bristles with moody irritation and anxiety, but it seems to be aimless at the moment, merely coloring the air with an uneasy energy. Case in point: his manner of speaking is brusque and sharp, even moreso than usual, but there's no true vitriol or venom in his words.

Not that that caveat lessens how demanding he must come across when he deadpans, ]

You're gonna do me a favor. [ The way he just says this as a fact, instead of a request??? But whatever, she owes him one, anyway. Especially after her return to Meridian. Even if Gen can't exactly blame her for it, he still has no qualms about using that against her to extract some use out of her. ] Gonna give you something you gotta deliver for me. So where are you. I'm heading over.

[ Very suddenly, there’s a sense of Communion touching your character’s mind. However, it’s as if they connect with the mind of a shared Aspect, as they’re not able to block out the brief, but sharp memory that comes to them. ]

With shaky hands, a new Shard-Bearer accepts a Shard from Yima. Their husband was reduced to this, something so small and fragile, and in that moment, they know that they’ll stop at nothing to protect it and bring him back.

[ ooc note — Just to avoid OOC confusion/misinterpretation, the details included in this memory are random and are not necessarily interconnected or plot meaningful beyond a surface level. However, your character is free to interpret this random memory however they’d like! This event will also be touched on somewhat during today’s NPC Communion Post. ]

[ Gray has always been self-conscious about the difference in status — or former status — between herself and Rudbeckia. Rudbeckia has never been condescending toward her, or rude, or otherwise acted like she and Gray were worthy of different things... but it's one of those things that sit in the back of Gray's mind, like noting that cats are different from dogs.

So she's a bit surprised when she's notified that Rudbeckia will be helping out at Dokja's book cafe, Ugly Squid. She won't make any assumptions, though; having a fancier background doesn't equate to incompetence. On the contrary, being especially rich might require one to be hypercompetent to protect those riches... and an ability to navigate the social politics of aristocracy might translate well to navigating the minefield that can be customer service.

In any case, working at the Ugly Squid isn't actually that serious. If Gray has managed to work here without making a mockery of the place, then surely anyone can.

It's a slow spot in the day, late enough that the demand for coffee is sporadic. Gray stands with Rudbeckia at the coffee counter, thinking about where to start. It's rare that she's put in the position to train other people. ]

Miss Rudbeckia, do you drink much coffee?

[ The impression of Set being at the closed boundary of her mind is that of a hot breeze, a strong hand on the handle of a door — knowing it is locked, but waiting for the resident to choose to let him in, or not.

And the thing is, if he cannot get to her in his mind, he will simply find her as a person. Whole and physical and real, almost distracting her with Communion as he attempts to find her real shape ( in the shrine? her haven? ) and be there, too. Undeniable and determined.

In both his mind and reality, he says the same thing at the same time: ] I spoke with her, to reinforce the fact of our relationship. I will be explaining it to all of Meridian, then Zenith — once I am able to phrase it in a way that does not immediately make you a target. Neither Faction has any claim to you. Just me.

[Claude's not fond of Communion at the best of times, but he's most reluctant of all to use it to commune with his fellow Stargazers. Those negative emotions he goes to pains to hide -- his cold anger at Set, his revulsion toward Voryn -- are all but impossible to hide, and he in turn is open to all manner of thoughts, feelings, impressions, that might leak over from the others unimpeded.

Ruby, however, is someone he can't ignore. He should have intervened in Hayame speaking with her before, but as it stands, he's a little too late. Even so, he can't let it go unaddressed.

So he stands on the edge of her Communion, not invited and not wanting to intrude even with their shared Aspect, to say his part:]

Rudbeckia? I'm... sorry for how she spoke to you.

[ How long has it been since they all awoke at that wretched tree? Two days, maybe three? Time doesn't really have any meaning anyway, not with the way Gen's been aimlessly sleeping the hours away, drifting between nightmares (awful but familiar), coherency (awful and unwelcome) and some unpleasant middle ground (awful all around). But at some point, trying to sleep any more just rewards him with a throbbing headache and dizziness, and so he needs to do something, no matter how much he doesn't want to.

And so one afternoon finds Ruby receiving a nudge across Communion. It's more listless and weary than Gen's usual mental signature across Communion, like he simply can't muster the energy for his usual, prickly facade. The equivalent of a hand smacking open-palmed against her door, just once, in a drained demand for her attention.

And the moment she answers, Gen's words come through, hoarse and curt: ]

Where are you.

[ Ruby recieves a small parcel; it contains some mixed sweets and baked goods and a scarf or shawl, apparently chosen from a store somewhere. The lightness of it would seem to indicate Springstar, considering the weather. There's also a note: ]

I hope you are well, following the Oracle, and that this small token of my regard will help make this part o the year a little more cheerful.

-Dimitri Blaiddyd

[ Howl isn't one for religion Definitely not organized religion. But the more involved he gets in the Emporio District and the merchants and capitalists who control it, the more they seem to push him towards attending a service every once in a while. Something about the mission, about Meridian, about the importance of Bearers to show devotion to the cause... It's all still a bunch of nonsense to Howl, despite all that's happened since he arrived, so when he does finally give in, it's begrudging.

Unsurprisingly, it's just as silly as he feared. Howl keeps himself entertained by imagining what the other people around him might be thinking about his outfit, his hair, the promotions and advertisements he's done recently for the most popular brands in Skysong. He stares at the woman sitting in front of him, her curly beehive hairdo twisted up and around so oddly that it resembles a bird's nest. He gazes at the beautiful man delivering the sermon and speaking to the audience, using a little bit of subtle persuasive magic to keep him from focusing any of his attention on the golden-haired wizard. And, finally, his attention settles on the beautiful young woman, standing off to the side like a proper little trophy, as she watches her "husband."

She's an odd one. But, maybe, odd in a way Howl can understand. At the close of the proceedings, Howl stands and swiftly walks over to her, his long coat and trailing sleeves swaying slightly with his smooth steps. He looks remarkably handsome and beautiful today, his marble-like green eyes glittering as he flashes his best smile at her. ]

Miss Rudbeckia, wasn't it? [ They had only spoken over Communion before, but Howl knows this is her. Not just from her relationship with Set, but... the vibe she's giving off. ] If I may reintroduce myself and make your formal acquaintance, [ holding out his hand, ] I am the Wizard Howl. Please, allow me to speak with you a moment?

come on, wake up.	you have to be careful.
don't make mistakes.	you know how quickly kindness can turn into violence.

(frozen comment) no subject

Post Iconoclast Event

BACKDATED TO LATE WARQU, PRE-BEACH.

communion ; about a week after the exalt oracle fight

a memory—

action

right after she slams the door in communion 8)

after the hayame happenings

late takiltu ; communion

late takiltu

mid-pelu