spellbinders | [WORLD ONE | DING DONG THE FISH IS DEAD]

Entry tags:

[WORLD ONE | DING DONG THE FISH IS DEAD]

Who: Coven members and the Palai
Where: Celebrating the Uvi going boom-boom
When: Day 67
Open/Closed: Open to All
OOC Note:

The initial setting information found here should be utilized for threads here.

There's no official OOC account for the Palai people. You're free to roleplay their actions and reactions on your own, as in depth as you want -- asking questions, hand-waved interactions, becoming best friends. The new world is your oyster!

For decades, the Palai have had to deal with the threat of the Uvi invading their homes, killing their families and returning 30 days later. After the coven found their way to Aimintas, the Palai found that the threat wasn't so...threatening.

After the last attack, with many more Palai lost as compared to previous Uvi instances, some Palai had lost hope. Now, after seeing their nemesis blown to bits and falling out of the ocean, their faith in safety is restored.

While the Uvi are still committed (by and large) to learning more about barriers and other forms of safety, the time for focusing on serious things has passed. It will return, but tonight? They celebrate.

Unlike their last, shrimpy festival, this party has a lot more going for it. The Palai have had time to process the events and prepare themselves for a grand celebration. The Palai know how to party, but you ain't seen nothin' like this.

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[2B is already well on her way to being stoned, but the redness of her vision and the ever-present static noise isn't enough to make her mistake her partner's silhouette. The moment she seems him swaying on his feet, any pleasant and warm feelings the concoction gave her are immediately replaced by concern.]

9S! [She heads for him immediately, similarly unsteady but even swifter than usual. There's a distant thought that this drink reminds her of Jackass's drug, but that's not important right now. Extending her arm, she tries to reach out and grab him to steady him.] Are you alright?

[Ask that about yourself, 2B!!]

[When 2B's hand catches his arm, 9S lurches forward, but he manages through sheer luck to regain his footing. His visual input crackles and flickers as he turns her way, but he nevertheless looks up at 2B. She sure covered that distance faster than usual, didn't she? With his hearing less than reliable, he can't be entirely certain]

2B? [He asks, quite unsure what has caused such alarm. Maybe it's that table he just knocked over with all the grace of an inebriated bull. Her question takes several moments longer to process than it ought to] I'm...I think those vials are bad news...

[In fact he's quite sure of it]

You shouldn't...you shouldn't try those.

[A little too late for this, 9S]

Oh.

[Well, that much became clear after the bout of dizziness and the drop in quality of her vision, but it hadn't exactly bothered her. It was hard to think about why it was bad when she felt perfectly pleasant. Despite having consumed the same substance though, she's more worried about 9S than herself.]

I've already had one unfortunately, but never mind that. [Totally okay to just dismiss herself here!] Why don't you take a seat?

Oh, I'm too late then.

[His thought routines feel fuzzy, and so 9S glances around right where they're standing. The floor doesn't exactly seem like the most comfortable spot, even as his vision crackles and flickers again.

It really is a lot like the E-drug]

...You mean right here?

[He's dubious about this selection, wavering where he stands, apparently finding it a challenge to remain perfectly still. People'd wind up tripping over them, wouldn't they?]

No. [a beat] Unless you want to?

[If he wants to sit here, she won't stop him (and would probably end up taking a seat with him). She looks around for any nearby chairs though. If this really is like the E-drug, than even with enhanced fighting capabilities, she's not sure they could make it to something more than a few feet away without tripping themselves...]

There's a chair over there. [And she points at it, not too far away from them.]

[9S waits cautiously as several Palai children run by waving around what he presumes to be little toys. His vision crackles and sparks again as he tracks their movement, and he presses a hand to the side of his head]

Sitting...probably would be a good idea. [He's got to admit the probability of him knocking tables over would drop to just about zero then] But you need a chair too.

[A single chair is insufficient unless they're both somehow squeezing into that one, but he's not sure they'd fit]

I can get one after you sit.

[It's really not an issue? Besides, there's a big patch of grass next to the chair, and that looks fine to sit in. That might be easier than getting herself a chair actually. The more she considers the idea, the more she tries to sift through the hazy static of her thoughts, the more appropriate it sounds.

Yep, she can just sit on the grass. She doesn't voice any of this, but she starts moving them towards the chair anyways.]

[9S thinks about this, though his thought routines seem hazy at best, right now. He's pretty sure by now he knows what 2B is up to, having so very many points of reference. She puts others first, and that can come to the detriment of herself, so he's a little suspicious of this plan]

...Why don't we find somewhere to sit together?

[There goes his counter-offer. They're haggling now]

... Do you not like chairs? [A stunning deduction by YoRHa Unit 2B. Whatever was in that vial was really something else.

But she takes what he says into consideration regardless, looking for a potential seat aside from grass. 9S deserves better than that. Besides, at this rate, she's starting to think that after she sets him down and finds a seat of her own, she won't be getting up for a while.

And right nearby them is a building. With a roof. Hmm.]

We could sit up there? [Getting up after sitting is too much, but apparently managing their usual running around and jumping is just peachy.]

Not exactly, but...I like being eye-level. Or I mean, as close as I get, anyway.

[It's not the entire reason, but it's true all the same. Given the choice, he'd rather sit beside her than be the only one with a comfortable place to sit. Her tendency to place others before herself is admirable, but at the same time, that means someone needs to make her a priority too.

And 9S knows he can do that.

He turns his head to follow her line of sight to the building and ignores the visual distortion when he nods. Something like that it well within their means, and familiar besides]

Seems like a good place. And we'd have a nice view.

You're right. [She hadn't even thought of that. When she thinks about what it must look like from up there though, the lights and stalls and all the people here, she knows she wants to see it.] Let's head up.

[Despite her words though, she lets go of 9S cautiously, poised to help steady him again at a moment's notice. As strange as she feels, that won't stop her from being concerned about 9S first and foremost.]

Right.

[9S backs up more than he needs to, if only because he's not entirely confident of his perception right now. He's run afoul of enough tables to tell him that he's unaccustomed to this acceleration and increased strength, combined with sensory defects.

Maybe he ought to be, considering the state he last recalls being in before waking in some strange world.

After sizing up the jump as best he can, he moves forward and makes the attempt. It's less than graceful, latching onto the edge of the roof rather than using their standard double-jump and hauling himself up rather than using his hold as leverage.

Still, it gets the job done. And despite the sheer silliness of it, he turns right back around to lean over and stretch to offer 2B a hand]

[There's definitely something silly about it, especially when she's (probably mistakenly) sure she could manage a double-jump up there, maybe even with a dash. That doesn't stop her from taking his hand though, nor does it stop the small smile that makes its way across her face.

And assuming they can both manage their balance in these positions as she makes her way up...

Standing together with 9S on top of a roof is definitely a familiar thing, but the view before them isn't. Even if it's just a village, looking over somewhere populated and alive rather than empty and desolate—somehow, that alone is almost breathtaking.]

It's beautiful.

[9S surveys the scenery alongside her, and he finds he can't disagree. Although it's assuredly a strange place and he still struggles with how all of this can possibly be real, there's a serenity about it that they could find in few places back home. There's a stillness about where they come from, a yawning emptiness bringing with it the promise only of hostiles or a few scattered allied units.

And even then, how often had they ended up fighting them, between defectors and infections?

This place, in contrast, is teeming with life. But the promise of danger and combat don't loom so heavily in the air. Instead it's full of color and laughter, something they'd have never gotten a chance to see on such a scale before arriving here]

There's a lot of light, isn't there?

[In more ways than one]

There is. [She looks back at 9S, and her gaze never strays from him, steady and warm. The small smile gracing her lips widens, grows into something fond and gentle and so very happy.] You're here, after all.

[Would she say this if she wasn't under the influence of whatever drug was in the vial? Maybe not, but with as pleasantly fuzzy she feels, she can't think of a reason not to say it. Besides, it's only the truth. The time she spent with him was like memories of pure light. That hasn't changed at all, even now. There's a distant part of her that wonders if he was ever able to hear the message she left for him, yet for once, thinking about her last moments doesn't fill her with unease or sadness.

For all that she hid from him, she was able to leave him something that showed what she really thought. How she really felt. As much as she would've rather not died, it was hard to regret her message.]

Edited 2017-09-22 10:39 (UTC)

2B...

[The words catch him off-guard. He's hardly forgotten her message, stored safely in his memory as it is, and he thinks of it immediately. But he'd never have expected for 2B to echo the words she'd left for him in this way, and he finds that it feels like something has seized his chest in a vice-grip. It hurts to think that she left those words before going to meet her fate.

And it seems clear to him that she knew. In his present state it's even harder to fight the way his throat feels tight and his eyes burn. As he has in the past, he counts himself fortunate for the presence of his goggles to conceal the conflicted jumble of emotions that 2B can inspire in him.

At the same time that he's reminded how grateful he is for her miraculous revival, the memory of her loss burns still yet]

You're always full of surprises, huh?

... Maybe so.

[It's not a surprise to her, but she could understand why it might be to him. Even if he'd heard the message, she always tried so hard to conceal her real feelings. It makes sense, that he wouldn't expect a response like that. A few instances of genuine feeling wouldn't change that, not so easily.

She takes a seat at the ledge now, looking over the festival before looking back up at 9S again. Maybe it's because of what was in the vial, but there's something so surreal about seeing him here like this. About them, being here like this. Celebrating the end of a battle with little fear of something else happening, among so many lights and people in a village full of life. She couldn't have ever imagined this happening, not on her life.]

I'm glad that we're here. [Alive. Well. Together. Right now, she thinks this is all she could ever ask for.]

[After a few moments during which he debates heavily what to do with himself, 9S quietly stations himself to sit beside her. It's something of an awkward negotiation, his visual inputs still unsteady at best, but he settles into place without too much fuss. Right here is where he wants to be, so even if it were difficult, he'd find a way.

He's just that kind of stubborn.

Her thought takes more time to respond to. Truly, 9S is grateful that 2B is alive. He'd never imagined that it was possible, or he wouldn't have taken the course that he had. It must have been the work of their pods, and their absence remains concerning still yet. Even so...]

I'm glad to be wherever you are.

[And that is, perhaps, one of the most telling things he's said to her since they first crossed paths in this world peopled by bipedal lizards]

Edited 2017-09-25 05:10 (UTC)

[It almost feels as if her chest could burst from those quiet words. She never thought happiness could feel so painful, but right now it is. To hear words like those from him means more to her than she thinks he could possibly realize. That he would want to be with her despite everything never fails to mystify her, but selfishly, she's glad for it all the same.

Maybe that's why she allows herself the indulgence of leaning against him, that and the strange haze from the vial that already made her feel pleasant. This happiness is all because of 9S though. She's heavier than him, but she trusts that he'll be able to support her just like he always does. Besides, he's so warm, warm and alive and here, that she's too content to turn away from that.]

Yeah. [Her voice is a bit choked, too overwhelmed by the sheer happiness of this moment, but her smile is wide and warm. It's a rare one, a smile she can make out of pure joy and with nothing to hold her back from expressing herself.] Me, too.

[He finds it startling, the change in her voice that he can hear in the span of those few, quiet words. Their meaning soaks in slower, and the meaning is what warms him through, comforted with the knowledge that she's as happy to be together again as he is. There's a certain relief that suffuses him, relaxes his posture further than even the strange drug they'd been given had managed to achieve.

They're together again, they're alive, and they're both glad for it. 9S knows that none of that should be surprising. The words she'd left behind for him had made her sentiments clear, but even so, he's relieved that nothing has managed to change in the span of her passing and his own, and whatever had been done to repair them.

As he did once in the past, he settles a hand over hers, though much more cautiously than he had then]

That's the best I could hope for.

[Truly. It had been no overstatement to say 2B is his definition of family, and so too there is no overstating what those words mean to him]

[It's not like she was tense to begin with, but something in her still relaxes at his touch. Distantly, she's aware that she probably wouldn't be this lax without whatever was in the vial, so maybe she's trying just trying to make the most out of this. No worrying about how strange her sudden sentimentality might seem, no threats looming in the distance, no thinking about all the difficult things that still remain between them. Right now, there's none of that, and she wants to keep it like that for as long as possible.

So she settles in more, leaning against him more and turning her hand so she can clasp his in hers. She says nothing, simply turning her gaze back to the festival, but her smile alone probably says more than enough.]

[The quiet that settles between them is something that 9S finds himself reluctant to interrupt. As much as he's inclined toward chatter, he doesn't feel the need to say anything as he looks down at her hand holding his. She's always been the strongest person he knows and yet for that, he's struck by how gentle that touch is. And that's so very like her, in his mind.

That silence spreads itself over them and he doesn't mind it. If anything, there's something oddly soothing about it, a moment he doesn't feel like a yawning void he needs to fill up. It's nice like this.

He watches the crowd mingling below them quietly for some time before his eyelids start to feel heavy, and he doesn't have the presence of mind to do much about it. Eventually slow blinking gives way to sleep, and his head settles against her shoulder]

[When 9S falls asleep, 2B decides she'd much rather enjoy the festival night experience. She jumps down easily and sprints away without a care in the world, leaving 9S to plummet straight to the ground, blissfully asleep even as death approaches once more. He really should've picked a safe spot to doze off, huh?

Good thing we can always reload.]

[At least his death served a purpose]

[The quiet, content peace that settles between them could almost make her drowsy too, but she doesn't let it just yet. Even as high as she is, she knows this is a rare moment. It's not very often the two manage to enjoy each others' company without the weight of their pasts burdening their present. That's what this moment is to her.

Besides, this is hardly the best place to sleep either, and she only wants the best for him. After a long, long time of simply enjoying his presence and letting him sleep peacefully, she gathers him carefully into her arms, gently so as not to disturb him. Vaguely, she's reminded of when she carried him back home from after her fight with Adam, but this is much better. There's no fighting, he isn't wounded, and she has nothing to worry about. Her mind still feels somewhat hazy, but she doesn't let that stop her from easily and swiftly getting back to the Coven house, making sure 9S is undisturbed in his sleep all the while.

When she gets to his room, she settles him into the bed, even bringing the blanket over him. As for herself, she simply gets a chair and takes a seat. Someone has to watch over 9S and make sure he's safe even when he's asleep, right? Right. It sounds like a good idea, so she does just that.

And it's like that, with 9S by her side and the lively sounds of the festival quiet in the background, that she finally falls asleep.]

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[WORLD ONE | DING DONG THE FISH IS DEAD]

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[n]ot here

[d]ying, thanks...

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