2018-12-19: My Kissing Is So Good It Defies Gravity

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  • Log: My Kissing Is So Good It Defies Gravity
  • Cast: Seraph Amaranth, Talia
  • Where: Photosphere
  • Date: 19th December 2018
  • Summary: i mean what else can i say here


<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

The Festina Lente (Photosphere Edition) has been...

... well, it's been... suspiciously hopping around with a pliability that's seldom seen in buildings, given that they're... buildings. But with the need to supply Drifters pushing in the assault against the Metal Demons, with the need to shelter refugees and the Tainted in their mix, it's become something of a mobile asset for those in the know.

Which is why it's sitting on a somewhat out of the way ledge on something that once resembled a cafeteria past some broken gantries, out of convenient reach for most except for magical Drifters who have warpstriking swords in their inventories.

It's kind of dinged up and singed in some places, but it's still standing strong. Inside, Ammy's tending to several of the Tainted and handing them water and blankets and giving them some first aid...

<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.

Talia, of course, is one of the Drifters in the know. She approaches carefully, just the same -- sliding along the ledge, with a bandage tied tight around one arm. She had her blue, fur-collared shirt slightly ruined again; one sleeve has been torn off, which reveals that on her left bicep, she has a tattoo that looks like a stylized double-wave, the top one blue and the lower one red. Her forearm is bandaged by the remainder of what used to be a sleeve.

She pokes her head through the door, red eyes looking about for a moment. Before she entered, she cleaned Mirage of quicksilver blood; some Metal Demons chose another apath.

She helped dispatch them. Her feelings are complicated, but easily compartmentalized.

Besides, she can't feel too bad for fighting to protect this place -- and help others. Talia steps inside before she spots Amaranth, and then she waves a hand at her. She flashes a winning grin at the Tainted. "You will have to pardon me, no? I may need to steal her for a moment."

She winks.

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

Amaranth sucks in a breath as she looks towards Talia as she enters -- and sighs in relief. She isn't injured, largely because she's wearing a house as a Gear form (??) and because she has incredible survival skills in Running Away at the first sight of trouble; the Tainted waves amiably at Talia as she steps up and leans to her for a moment.

"O-oh Althena, look at you, Talia! Do you need some Gel? I've got some stored in the back if you need them..." she's nattering.

It's not particularly hard to see that she's basically on high tension the entire time; the idea of being in a war zone is something she wouldn't have even considered even a month ago, after all.

<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.

Talia's smile is less worried -- but there /is/ worry in it, once one knows where to look. There is a slight tension at the corners of her mouth, that her usual laid back, easygoing expression can't quite hide from someone who's seen and known more of her. She tilts her head, and then there is a relieved sigh. Ammy is untouched.

Tense, but not (physically) harmed.

"Ah, it is not so bad, no? Just a stray slash from a very unpleasant dog... wolf... metal... thing," she says with a sigh. She rubs a hand across her face, before she looks back up. "Let's go in back, though. A Gel will handle this!"

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

There's a little, littlest heave of concern as she rummages from her admittedly extensive catalogue of healing items and offers a Gel over the counter, then steps a little closer. "Thank you for your hard work. We wouldn't have been able to save as many people if you hadn't brought them in," Amaranth remarks with a bashful smile.

She's not even really sure when she'd entered the altruistic business, but... with the way things have gone, it also didn't feel in-line with what she chose to remember of Althena's benevolence if she did nothing.

<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.

"A-ah, well, you know..."

Altruism is, for Talia, a foreign concept that she has began to live to. She doesn't quite feel at home with it, but she doesn't know what else to do. Could she simply ignore the Tainted? She looks down for a moment, and her smile is almost -- almost! -- apologetic. "...I am glad to have helped, no? Lydia told me a little. I wanted to do my part, for her sake. And..."

She shakes her head. "...It feels nice, to help like this, no?" She looks back up. "And, besides--you having this shop here has done wonders, too!"

She winks again. She steps a little closer to Ammy, too. She hesitates -- and then quickly munches down the Gel, before she forgets.

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

It's not as if Ammy doesn't understand Talia's struggle with it. She's not certain how she came to that path too. She's certain half the 'altruistic' things she did was out of pleasure for her own crafts... but... well.

"... Lydia's been hurting a lot. Said her mom got kidnapped or something...?" Ammy furrows her brow, clearly not too up with Eel News. "And--"

She huffs. "When /you/ told me what you were going to do, I had to pick my heart off the floor, put it back in my mouth, then walk the walk," she flushes and--

--gives Talia a kind of needy peck on the cheek. "I'm glad you're back."

<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.

"She, ah, she was. It is terrible, no?" Talia's voice almost sounds light, but there is something a little deeper to that lightness. It's an affected calm -- trying to hide how much Talia wanted to tear off after Lydia and help her. In the end, though, she couldn't do that. When the fight went to Mother and the Ley Dragon, a surge of Metal Beasts had to be put down.

Talia's blade worked best there.

She looks back up at Ammy with a start. "Ah--I--didn't intend--" Her cheeks flush, that hint of red entering them, right before she gets that kiss on the cheek. She blinks, slowly, before she smiles. "...I am glad, too, no?" she says. She steps closer, and then slides both arms around Amaranth's shoulders. Her head tilts, then.

"I am sorry about getting your heart on the floor." She grins. "I try to keep it in better shape, no? But... it is different, now, having people who worry for me. Instead of just one person."

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

Ammy plants her lips and closes her eyes for a moment. "... I haven't seen my... ah, adoptive Seraph parents for a long while. And I do not even remember my parents, whoever they may be. But I feel as if..."

She shifts for a moment, turning a bit redder. "I can still remember what it feels like to possibly lose them, like it were just yesterday. Let's-- be sure to be supportive," she finishes with a smile.

She leans just a bit forward. "Well, you play with my heart in many ways. Let's not try to drop it too much, hmm?"

<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.

Talia is quiet, for a moment, as she watches Ammy talk of her parents -- adoptive Seraphim and human alike -- and then she looks down. She opens her mouth; something almost spills out, but then something that is still guarded and frightened blocks it, before she can really let that hesitation and more play out. Her dark red eyes, nonetheless, pointedly do not meet Amaranth's.

She nods her head. "Mm," she says. "Yes. It is important, no? For... for all of them. They have been through so much in recent days, no?"

Her eyes do lift, though -- and when Ammy leans forward, she does too. With a sigh, Talia leans her forehead against Ammy's, after a brief pause, and she smiles. "I don't plan to. I am rather fond of that heart of yours. I think I might keep it to myself, if it's all right~"

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

Amaranth swallows for a moment, hesitating since it's... well, family's a rather sensitive business for Talia right now. And she knows it. She feels as if she got a bit unguarded for a moment. "... I'm sorry."

She reaches for her hand at that point, then smiles just a bit and lets the conversation move on. "W-well... am I not supposed to be the one stealing hearts as a thief? Ah, perhaps I am past my prime..."

<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.

"It is... ah, it is nothing to feel guilty over." Her hand squeezes Ammy's back. Talia stands up, on her tip-toes, and then kisses Amaranth on the forehead, before she rocks back onto the balls of her feet. Her lips part into a grin -- happy to move on, and with no trouble doing so.

"I think you stole mine first," she says. "Ah, the daring rescue in Azado! And the cloaks, and then the date..." She sighs, fondly. "You did wonderfully, no? But..."

She squeezes her hand. "I would not complain if you keep stealing it. It is nice. /Especially/ for times like this."

This is, after all, a much needed distraction.

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

Amaranth makes a cute little noise as Talia tip-toes over and smooches her; the way the Seraph kind of explodes a little is a spectacle to be sure, though the smile gets just a little wider. "... and the heist. That one too," she bashfully admits, "And please forgive me if I do say the daring rescue had my heart on the floor, no matter how smoothly I managed to pull it off!"

A pause as she sighs, squeezing her hand in turn. "... it is nice. It's... it's not something I can say I've had before. It reminds me of why sis has tried it before."

<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.

"You could have fooled me at the time. Though... knowing you better, I can see that." Talia winks, before her head bobs once, thoughtfully. Was their meet-cute a fabulous heist at a mansion? That, she decides, is a story for the ages. She will have to tell Ivan all about it, one day, she thinks with a grin.

"Mm... it is," she says. "I--well... I never really considered anything lasting, before, no? It seemed like it would have been impossible." She doesn't comment on whether she considered something shorter term than lasting. "And... you came along, and--ah..." Her cheeks turn red, again. "...well, it suddenly fell into place."

She pauses, a moment, and clears her throat. "Your sister, ah--Ragnell. She's older than you, if I remember...?"

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

"... there's a lot of faking it until you make it on theatre," Amaranth remarks, rather consciously trying to not sound /too/ self-deprecating about it. She laughs for a moment longer, then-- looks towards Talia.

"Lasting..." a pause. "W-well. Even if it wasn't... and I'm /glad/ it wasn't... I would've been all the happier to have met you." She squeezes her hand a bit tighter.

"I'm... actually older than her?" Amaranth has to pause at that question. "Our adoptive parents brought me in first, then her when she was born. ... though, honestly, it's just a matter of age. I think she's much more confident and wise, so I treat her as an older sister," she grins sheepishly.

<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.

"Ah, is that it?" Talia asks, with a grin.

She knows a little of the theatre -- mostly from putting on an act, and having to put on a persona for her previous job. Sometimes, to get close to someone, she had to pretend to be someone else. She blinks, though, and her head tilts. A part of her is curious just /how/ old Amaranth is. But, it might ruin the mystery.

And, besides: would a Seraph really think of age the way a human does?

Clearly not.

Her smile remains. "I'm glad I did too, no? And... ah, and that... it all happened, the way it did. I wish we could have brought Ivan with us--that you could meet him." She tilts her head, then she smiles a bit brighter. "She seems wise and confident, no? I met her the once. Ah--it was like that, with Ivan and I. He is hopeless, sometimes, but... he is my big brother. Even if I am, technically, older."

Not by much.

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

"That and... you know. I think there's a difference between... existing, and actually living," Amaranth remarks ruefully. A pause, as she loops that back towards the earlier point before it gets too dour again:

"You've helped me... feel like I'm living life again."

She puckers for a moment, nodding as she listens in. "It is that way for a lot of siblings, isn't it? Ragnell was always the one to grab me by the wrist and yank me out and throw me into a lake just to teach me swimming or any other such thing she'd discover humans doing," she reminisces a little, laughing again.

<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.

"Mm... yes, I think I know about that. Maybe... not the same way, but..." Talia could see how, at times, her life was just existing; a life of trying to stay alive, of trying to not draw Lubov's ire, of trying to keep Ivan alive. Her life was never, until recently, lived; when she was off Lubov's leash enough to do as she wished, even fleetingly.

She smiles, and hesitates, before she moves back closer to Ammy. She sighs, before a hand reaches up, and rests on the back of her head.

She cracks a smile. "It is," she says. "He had a way of it, too, no? But... I am glad she convinced you to." She winks. "We could have so much more fun, now that you're trying such things, no?"

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

"... even if not the same way... there's a feeling common to it," Amaranth admits with that chuckle. She shifts and takes that familiar grimoire onto the table. "Sitting in this vessel, uncaring about time as it passed. Being picked up once in a while by some curious individual..."

A pause.

"I've had a great time. Taking that train ride, even going to that haunted manor... ah--" she flushes a little. "I wanted to... make a theatrical performance at these wonderful Blue Star landmarks called 'banks' sometime."

She wags her finger to say, "Apparently they store money there. And pray tell there are huge tales of derring-do of insidious robbers and Drifters who stop them. I want to--"

She blinks.

"I want to fake-rob a bank? I'd make it a wonderful performance. I wonder if someone will allow me to make a publicity stunt for them. Maybe it could even be a kid-friendly show."

<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.

"Mm... I can imagine," Talia admits. "Your vessel... is this shop, no? I knew it was special." Or, maybe, it's something smaller. She only knows a little of vessels -- but enough to know they're importat. She tilts her head, and she grins -- a little wider at the mention of the haunted manor.

She blinks, though, and she laughs at that. It's a sweet, good-natured laugh.

"Why, Ammy! That's perfect! And /so/ very you, no?" she asks. "You would need... oh, you would need some sort of thing to retrieve. I heard sometimes they put famous jewels or gems--or other things in there. And there are these fantastically complicated safes..."

She nods. "It would be such fun, no? You could pick a scenic one! Why, we could go early, and it could be a vacation!"

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

"A-aah, well... no, in Seraph's terms, this grimoire is my divine vessel," Amaranth explains gently. A pause. "You know how I keep jumping into it when I'm terrified? It's a sanctified artifact." She puffs up just a little more proud.

The grimoire does look impressively ancient, except... for those in the know, it's a book about magicians and theatre, rather than a tome of ancient magic.

It's kinda like Ammy, maybe.

She does perk up and smile as Talia gets encouraging. "Right? I could procure the precious thing to steal! And I'd treat all the staff to dinner and something extra for their troubles, maybe-- er--"

A pause.

"A scenic bank? That sounds good... especially if it is a vacation with you," she smiles. "A promise, after this?"

<Pose Tracker> Talia has posed.

"The grimoire!" Talia exclaims. "Oh, but of course! You do keep leaping into it. And it's..." It is quite her. About magicians and theatre. She looks down at it, with wide eyes, and then she looks back at Ammy and grins, brightly. Her hand rests on her hip for a moment, and she tilts her head to the side.

"Mm-hm! A dinner after the show would be wonderful, no? And maybe--oh, some Drifters, to attempt to foil the robbery. Or help it...?"

She trails off, before she fights back a giggle. "A scenic city must have a scenic bank. And a vacation is /precisely/ my thought. After all of this, it would be perfect, no?"

Talia winks again. Then, she leans forward -- eyes quickly darting towards the door to the other room, where the Tainted was -- before she decides this is enough privacy. She kisses Ammy, briefly, on the lips.

Which is when the floor shifts under their feet and she yelps, tumbling right into her.

"AMMY, MY KISSING IS SO GOOD IT DEFIES GRAVITY," she whines loudly, as there is a distinct /upward/ sensation to the way their surroundings shift.

<Pose Tracker> Seraph Amaranth has posed.

"W-we'll get an... understanding restaurant this time. Or perhaps I'll cast an illusion over myself. Just so you don't get the pity seconds again," Amaranth feels distinctly defensive about that, even though it /is/ free food.

She smiles just a bit wider as she watches Talia's eyes, and then she looks around and...

Their lips meet.

For a moment, Amaranth does feel as if she's been lifted off the ground.

For a second further, she realises she is off the ground.

For that third second, she wonders if she's manifested her doves to lift her off the ground or if she spontaneously learnt how to fly. Is this where the phrase, 'like being on cloud nine' comes from?

It's wonderful, unlike any other--

"I THINK YOUR KISSING LIFTED OUR ENTIRE HOUSE OFF THE GROUND," Amaranth whines in turn as she finally catches on as some of the Tainted yelp. "I--I think the entire Sphere is--"

Amaranth pokes her head out the window, clinging to Talia still. "W-we are lifting! I see the ground-- what's going on??"

"I--I don't know," whines one of the Tainted, "I never even knew the starship could still fly!"