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By now Chalcanthite had a method to this new madness of his, something which had netted him multiple non-confrontational meetings with those from order. Though they had been senshi each time and his youma had played intermediary, he wanted to try a new approach to things. As always he made sure that Melpomene was wearing the pair to his earring in case something happened but it was more to ease both of their worries when he was out looking for information.

He’d found the medallion in the Rift a while back but he still had no clue where it had originated from, the symbols and script on it weren’t one he recognized but that didn’t prevent the thing from working. Walking about with the signature of a captain instead of a general made him less of a target. It was easier for order to let their guard down it seemed and he enjoyed that benefit because it meant that he was less likely to be swarmed.

Keeping a bit farther from the university in order to avoid the few of his team who were students, he wandered through one of the newer parks. Well new was putting it strongly, it was more they’d allowed some of the art students to spruce up things with art installations and fairy lights in some of the trees. It was rather nice, something he might bring Melpomene to see another night but as he crossed over the small raised bridge, he felt a squire and paused. Thumbing the medallion in his breast pocket, a slight smile crossed his face at the prospect of meeting a knight. It could be quite interesting due to the fact that they could be a bit ineffective in fighting depending on what type of knight they were.

The best thing would be to let them find him, since he wasn’t doing anything really other than wandering it would go much better than if they happened upon him draining someone. Not that he needed to do that as much anymore with his team handling things and reporting back to him. It gave him more time for little excursions like this which he felt benefitted him and the Negaverse more.

Offering a slight nod and a smile, Chalcanthite didn’t make any other movements to startle them. “Yes, very nice, one of the better installations I have seen over the years.” Looking back out over the slowly flickering lights, he very much preferred those over the shocking little fireflies from just a few months back.

Out of the corner of his eye, he still watched them and went over the different symbols in his head until he had an idea of which type of knight they were, at least they weren’t one of Castor as he’d heard the story about how apt to fight they were from both his sister and from Benitoite.

“The calm before the storm it seems, I rather dislike the unaligned magic during the fall. Something troublesome and harmful about it always makes things difficult for everyone. How about you?” Leaning up he faced them again, keeping an eye out for if they decided that a conversation wouldn’t be an option.

“Yes, I do believe they have a different plan every few years. I think this one is meant to pull from the Star Fest’s design in a way.” He could see that with the fairy lights and some of the trailing colors and streamers that hung from the railings on the bridge. “I like to take the time and see it when I can to see what they come up with.” Always paying attention to the details and seeing if he recognized any of the work from the art students, he had a few of his students that juggled art and music so it was something he looked out for.

His face soured slightly for a moment at the idea someone enjoyed the mischievous and sometimes harmful magic, at least until they added in a caveat. “Oh… I very much avoid the forests, not just because of that but it seems easier to get lost in them.” Noticing they were closer, he didn’t really react much to it but took in more of the details of their uniform to file away and write down in a report. Another sketch would be added into his notebooks as well of the symbols and their appearance for his own records. He’d gotten quite good over the years though he never really showed anyone other than Liam, even they had ended up finding out without him really wanting them too.

“I prefer routine but I can understand that, sometimes things can feel stagnant and a new experience or event can help combat that. I still would rather find some sort of hide away for Halloween. Nothing good has ever come from that holiday for me.” Sighing as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other, settling in a bit more comfortably for the conversation. It didn’t seem like a fight would break out which was good, they looked like a student or at least an age which they could be a student and he really didn’t like the idea of causing someone to fall behind in courses even if they weren’t on the same side.

“Learning is something that comes in time, whether it comes from normal things or… things that are a bit on the magical side.” He’d learned a lot over the years, what to look for when someone was about to turn a pleasant conversation into a punch to his face mainly though. “I would recommend someone to help if you decide to venture forth into mysteries. I even worked alongside a senshi of order in the past during that… unfortunate holiday season. What was it again….” Tapping his fingers in a melody on his thigh as he thought, trying to recall which of the events with Lacerta would be better to bring up. Deciding on the original one he nodded, mostly to himself, before looking back over at them.

“It was the botanical garden, more than once to be honest. We have sort of a working relationship when it comes to the unaligned bothers.” Talking about the white moon turned mirror senshi always did bring a smile to his face, they’d always been kind to him even after they’d told him what had caused the change. He still felt for them, offered them a place to stay if needed, and was always there to assist during the holidays or whenever the mirror needed him and Melpomene.

“But yes allies can come in many forms, even if they might not exactly be what is expected.” Even now he was keen on finding some knights or order senshi who were more keen on conversing so that he might find out more information. Reports would be made but he kept the most important details for his own records, away from others for if he needed specific assistance he might not otherwise find.

Returning the woman’s smile with one of his own, he inclined his head in acceptance of their name. “Chalcanthite but most shorten it to Chal. I am comfortable being called by either.” He would have offered his hand in introduction but it was better not to push anything since even if he was pretending to be a general most knew draining could happen through touch.

“It does make sense, by the way, the idea of it just being more during the holidays. I just frankly wish that sometimes the unaligned horrors would give the holidays a rest. I very much enjoyed the winter season up until last year, fell straight through the ice into lord knows where before my partner pulled me free.” In the end, it had put things in motion that had left him free from his habit of smoking, but he still hadn’t enjoyed the experience one bit.

“I can understand that point of view even if it is one I cannot quite agree with, I may have been a bit more rigid in the past but I had my own poor experiences and somehow, against all odds, I am still here.” Maybe not in the best condition but he was much better off now that he had a few allies on all sides of things.

“If nothing else think of me as a conversationalist, someone to chat with because I do find it nice to sit back and talk. I have no real intention of fighting others so worry not, I can understand if you take my words with a grain of salt as well though.” It wasn’t so easy for some to trust off the bat, not like how Parsifal and Ako had been so open to interacting with him. It was a mixed bag because he even had his own trouble with the mirror court and some other officers and corrupt senshi.

“I always wonder how that magic decides what occurs and what may come back like a plague of cicadas each year. I feel like if there was a way to forecast it, things might be easier? Maybe we may never get a normal holiday but with enough forewarning at least a less dangerous one?” And honestly, that was all he could hope for, and if it didn’t happen he at least had Liam to make sure he didn’t get too injured. The dip in the ice bath last year had left him feeling his age in ways he’d rather not revisit.

That was good progress at least and he noted the fact that they weren’t one to throw the first punch either. That could be taken with a grain of salt but still was a good thing to keep track off. “A healthy level of suspicion is good and warranted. I may have been… a bit less cautious than I should have back in the day.” Even now he dipped into things for curiosity’s sake, toeing the line and barely avoiding things going wrong on more than one occasion.

“I take that as a compliment and I can say the same for you as well.” At some point he might look into the database to see if there was a report regarding her if she’d dealt with various senshi before. If he was truly the first agent it would give him a bit of feedback on how on top of gathering information some corrupts might be. He knew that there were different branches but he still thought it was important to be well informed and hoped the others had the common courtesy to at least write some sort of report up. If they hadn’t he’d get a proper one set up as he did every time he’d met someone from the other side or even the mirror court.

So they were new, that might explain things and he felt like it would be good to share a bit of information then. At least on things that were unaligned and known about regardless of which side one fell on. “Method, not precisely, but I have noticed some things are more common than others. Unfortunately…” Pulling out a specific notebook from subspace, he leafed through it quickly until he got to the page and illustration of the large spiders and gargoyles, “these are common more often than not each year in some form or another.” Offering the open notebook to them, keeping a firm grip on it, he let them view the painstakingly drawn sketches of some of the things he had encountered.

“That and the doppelgangers, those are more… personalized. Yes, that would be a fitting and unsettling way to explain things.” Grimacing at the topic, he’d dealt with that creature almost yearly, the only reprieve from it being the previous year but that had certainly been because he’d been helping Liam and making sure they got time to finish their final semester of uni.

“Always good to hear, I quite dislike the things galavanting around wearing my face or the face of those close to me.” It was never good, never led to anything even remotely pleasant, yet it showed up time and time again like clockwork. Last year had been a fluke but he wasn’t counting on it being a new pattern with the season soon approaching.

Looking over the sketches of trees and bugs, he recognized a few but had luckily not experienced them himself. Just in case, he flipped toward the end of his notebook and copied over the information in his neat script. Writing quickly and precisely, it only took a few moments to copy it down, a talent he had from grading papers often and taking notes sometimes on the edges of a battlefield.

“It is better to know and be prepared than to be surprised in my opinion. I would rather not come across something new without at least some idea of how to avoid getting harmed.” And that did apply across the board with any sort of interaction he had when it came to the powered side of things. “If I do see anything we could use this art installation as a meeting place to exchange notes.”

It had been awful, but not always for the reasons people thought it might be. Getting chased was one thing, being tormented by things one regretted was another. But as they smiled, he nodded and felt a bit better about someone listening to his advice as well as how smoothly this interaction had gone.

Looking over the railing a bit, probing one of the wooden beams on the raised path, he felt it wiggle slightly. “A small gap here I believe would work.” Moving aside as he squatted down to look at the space he’d felt with his fingers. This wasn’t the first time he’d gone and set up a dead drop or meeting area in a pinch for someone over the years. It was just a bit more difficult when considering the opposing nature of conversing with a Squire as a General.

“Written correspondence should suffice, do let me know if you hear of anything wandering in the upcoming weeks. I tend to make the attempt to dissuade some of those creatures from bothering civilians.” Standing back up and smoothing his uniform, Chal took a look around just in case even if he didn’t feel any other signatures nearby. Experience told him that a lack of signatures meant nothing if a mauvian was involved and he was always making sure he wasn’t about to get ambushed.