genessia | [Video/Action] Another Goodbye (OTA)

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[Video/Action] Another Goodbye (OTA)

[In striking contrast to her previous broadcast, Dove is sitting alone on her balcony, obviously trying her best to retain her composure. Unlike her bubbly, presentable camera persona, she's... about as raw as she can be, far beyond what - under normal circumstances- she would deem appropriate. There's no hiding the red rimming her eyes or the blotchiness of her complexion, but it has to be done.]

If anyone is looking for Styxx Anaxkolasi, he's been sent home, [she manages smoothly enough.] I'm not sure who all he was close to, but I... I thought it should be said.

[And... that seems to be all. She checks her near-empty glass before switching off her device and downing the rest of it.]

((action below the cut))

[Action-Open to all-Fayren Beach]

Her footsteps through the sand are perilously calm as she walks along the shore to the too-familiar cove, wings tall and proud behind her, golden gaze set ahead. Not even the moonlight or the chill of the ocean lapping her feet seem to be able to draw her attention tonight.

It's fascinating, how it hurts so badly to suddenly feel nothing and yet everything at once...and how quiet it is in her head...yet again.

She hesitates only once, just before rounding the curved rock wall and slipping onto the makeshift field she knows too well. Already, the glowing tattoos of the Archangel are crawling up her legs and down her arms.

Deflecting the memories as they come, she studies the ocean in silence until she's lost track of time and her hands begin trembling. A queen with a useless throne... a grounded angel... more of her makeshift family lost...and prayers she's unsure can stretch between worlds.

Without warning, she steels herself and releases a blast of fire from within her, so hot the sand around her turns to shimmering glass. She doesn't so much as flinch dry her eyes as the flames take form around her and rise, golden-red wings unfolding to greet the sky-

A phoenix... his phoenix.

She watches unwaveringly, even as tears spill down her face, as the magnificent bird soars higher and higher, out over the ocean, powerful wings beating in a graceful, smooth rhythm as it climbs toward the heavens. She's shaking now, fingers trembling as they reach for it, willing the fire to last just a little longer, the cut of just one more witty taunt, the rarest sight of a smile on his face... those beautiful blue eyes...

There's a brilliant light as those wings flare once more against the stars and burst, leaving nothing but slowly dying sparks dancing through the air in their wake.

Dove watches them dance through the silence of the night before she finally drops her her knees and buries her face in her hands, wings splayed uselessly on the sandy glass behind her.

It's uncertain how long she'll weep and pray to useless gods she doesn't know... but she'll be leaving the beach with only pieces of her heart...

...and a little glass phoenix to place between the ever-frozen rose and miniature tiger already on her bedside table.

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[Lea glanced away from the vegetables he was preparing long enough to give Ace a hopefully reassuring smile, before returning his focus to his task.

He similarly glanced up at Dove when she spoke, but looked back down at his work before replying; not good to get too distracted while using sharp knives.]

A bit yeah. Mostly just little stuff though. There's not really room in the apartment to work on anything too big- [even with Xion's room largely repurposed into a workspace.]- and things like metal and glass tend to get pricey and heavy in large quantities.

That, and... well, I dunno if anybody'd really want anything much bigger than jewelry. There's a craft store in the city that sells the little stuff for me when I have it to sell, but well...

[He trails off with a slight shrug. Anything relatively large would have to be a lot more expensive if he going to keep doing it to try and make money. And he wasn't sure anyone would want to pay that much for his work.]

[Those things she could help him with at least, if not only because she wanted to see him succeed, but now also for all the help he was giving her in return just by being there. Supplies, a workspace, a model... any of it, just for his presence.

Her response came a few moments too late, just as fresh tears found their way down her face.] I...might need your help with something else, [she admitted quietly, pulling a roughly formed glass phoenix from her pocket and setting it on the table with a shaky hand.] N-Not right now, but... I didn't have enough control this time to...to actually...

[Lea paused in his vegetable preparing to come take a closer look at the glass phoenix. Even in its rough state there was something wild and beautiful about it.]

I'd be glad to help you finish it. Not right now, like you said, but definitely before I head back to my place.

[Which probably wouldn't be until the next day, but he was fine with that. He left the glass phoenix sitting on the counter and went back to his preparations.

By now he has a good amount and variety of vegetables chopped, retrieving a few smaller bowls and dividing them up based on when they'll need to go into the soup.]

You know... if it turns out you like this soup, I'll have to make it again for you sometime. My mom used to make it for me a lot when I was a kid, especially in winter; she knew it was the best way to get me to eat my vegetables.

[She only nodded her gratitude, using the sleeve of her sweatshirt to dab at her face again. Despite its sharp edges, the little figure had been hewn with more emotion than she was sure she'd ever even be able to feel again. It was nothing as sophisticated as the rose blossom and tiger it would be joining on her bedside table. Those partings had broken her then, too, but nothing like this. Those friends had had real homes to go back to... unlike what she imagined Styxx would find waiting for him.

She bent to kiss Scout's head, using the simple affection to keep herself together while Lea was there. Ugh. She loathed this. All of it. She just wanted to crawl into bed and disappear for months.

Once centered again, she watched him shift about the kitchen, determined to focus on what he had to say.] Y-Yeah... anytime... It's too big for just me anyway, [she told him quietly, silently musing to herself that what he offered was yet another small glimpse into his past. While she had poured out a tragic amount to him only months ago... she was quickly realizing how little she actually knew about his own aside from the still somewhat absurd revelation that Mickey Mouse and friends were truly real in his world.] I'm betting you were really stubborn when it came to your veggies...

[Rough and exhausted, her voice was weak, but...anything was better than sobs. Any distraction welcome.]

[With the veggies divided up, Lea checked the water, adjusting the heat slightly and adding a bit of salt to it before going back to the cutting board to deal with the fresh herbs. It would only need another minute or two to be ready to start adding the other ingredients, but might as well make those minutes useful.

At the comment about him being stubborn about vegetables, though he chuckled faintly.]

Heh, yeah. Of course, I was stubborn about a lot of things. Though Isa could give me a run for my munny in that department.

[The traces of the chuckle vanish at the mention of Isa, but he continues.]

Isa... well you'd never know it if you just talked to him casually, but he feels things really deeply. He'd put up this cold, aloof exterior, but underneath, he was actually pretty sensitive. And if you could get him to smile... well, it was something special.

[Pause]

Least it used to be. I haven't really ever seen him smile since we were kids. He was in the Organization too, and leaned pretty hard into the whole 'no hearts' thing as Siax.

[Isa... She frowned, doing her best to remember. It sounded familiar, but her mind refused to cooperate.]

"Isa?" [Even with the numbing weight of her own emotions, she could feel the quick shift in Lea's.

She tucked the eevee closer to her, wishing her mind would stop trying to connect everything to her lost friend. ]"...Styxx was that way, too."

As for leaning into their 'condition'...]"I... now understand why it would be tempting," [she admitted. Extremely tempting. Right now, she'd give just about anything not to have to feel anything. Not that she would ever say such a thing to Lea, knowing full well how bad it had been. Even still, 'oblivion' seemed a much kinder option than the evening thus far had been.

Edited 2020-02-09 20:41 (UTC)

[Lea nodded slightly.]

Yeah... not sure if I've mentioned Isa to you before, but he and I were best friends back when we were kids.

[Now... he wasn't sure. He had every intention of dragging Isa's blue-haired butt back home when and if they won, but beyond that, there were too many unanswered questions.

Though he wasn't sure if bringing up Isa had been a good idea given Dove's reaction to it. She might not say it aloud, but he could guess what she was likely thinking. What anyone who'd ever had a broken heart likely thought at one time or another.

Up until he'd experienced it, he'd have wished that there was a way that he could grant the wish she was probably thinking of, if only for a little while. But now that he knew what it was like, not just how bad it was, but how dangerous. He wouldn't tell this to her, though for the same reason she didn't tell him what she was thinking right then.

Instead, he steered the conversation away from talk of Nobodies.]

We used to get into all kinds of trouble together. And he probably kept me out of a lot more of it too; would've probably ended up with more than a few broken bones if he hadn't held little me back from doing what in hindsight were some really stupid things.

[She remembered. He had mentioned the name here and there, but she had never really placed how close the two might have been.

She felt him turn the conversation and guilt licked its way up her throat. She...shouldn't have said it, even given how true it felt right now. Hopefully he'd forgive her for even having the thought.]

It's good to have people like that, [she nodded, so...so tired.] Was he an ...elemental like you? [There. Conversation successfully stirred away from both heartlessness and friendship.]

Yeah it is. As for being an elemental though...

[Lea shakes his head.]

Not really, unless the moon counts as an element. He actually ended up with powers based on the moon, or at least the old concept that the moon could make people crazy; he could enter a 'berserk' state, where his strength, speed, and general fighting ability got a boost, but he wasn't entirely in control of himself. Made him dangerous in a fight, but arguably he and I were pretty even in that area, and- unlike fire- it wasn't really useful anywhere else.

[Where to take the conversation from there though? A glance back at the glass phoenix on the table gave him an idea.]

It's kinda fitting that he got moon-based powers though, since he always had kind of a thing for rabbits. He had a pet one as a kid, and even one of his weapons ended up being rabbit themed. And you can bet I teased him about that one when I found out.

[He smiled a bit as he finished up with chopping the herbs, remembering. Even if they hadn't been able to feel it properly at the time, somehow teasing each other had still been a little bit fun.]

[Oh. That was... different.]

So... he was your mirror, [she observes quietly, watching him work.] I-I mean... Fire, sun... all that...makes sense.

[Maybe it was different in his world, though. Right now, she was too exhausted to even correct herself.]

Rabbits? [She's tired but... there's a flicker of something there, something almost like... distaste.]

[He considers the thought for a moment.]

Yeah, I guess he kinda was. In more ways than just that, really. He and I always kinda... balanced each other out.

[He sees that look at the mention of rabbits and can't help smiling slightly.]

Not a fan of rabbits, I take it?

Those people are rare. You're very lucky...

[She blinks at the smile, but seems to shrink in on herself a little, even if the mood is somehow shifted just a bit.]

Not... particularly... My brother tortured me with a stupid video game when we were little and it just sort of...stuck.

Yeah... I know.

[He does wonder if he made a mistake with the slight smile, though it remains impossible to avoid. Because an angel who was afraid of rabbits? Yeah.]

I hope you know I reserve the right to tease you about that once you're feeling better. And also now I'm curious about what angelic video games are like.

[He notes the time, and one by one, begins adding ingredients to the soup pot.]

[The smile, fortunately, helps a little, as does his teasing.]

Naturally, [she manages, giving him a slightly hopeful look. At least Lea was still here. She wasn't sure what she'd be doing without him. And they're not angelic. Almost everything we have aside from our power is human-made anyway. [A pause, then a grumbled,] Except that game. That one was obviously developed in the core of hell itself...

[Lea finishes adding all but a few ingredients to the pot, stirring it a bit then letting it simmer a bit while he waits for the time to add the last few ingredients.]

Heh... somehow I doubt it. Though humans can come up with some pretty twisted stuff too. Like... basically every horror movie ever.

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[Video/Action] Another Goodbye (OTA)

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Irisu Syndrome is the game hahahaha

Having looked it up, I get it now. X3