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 Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2025 9:36 pm
Everything in Halia's life lately was turning up magical. And frankly? She hated it. She had gotten a message earlier from Mason that he needed to talk to her about things of the magical nature, and she invited him over without hesitation, knowing that these sorts of conversations needed to be handled privately, without potentially dangerous people overhearing. So here she was, pacing back and forth, waiting for him to arrive as she also waited for tea to brew. Fancy, expensive, decadent tea that she had been saving for a special occasion, that she was brewing in her vintage Wedgewood tea service. Just because the conversation could be tense didn't mean she couldn't add an element of whimsy to it, right? Hearing a knock at the door, she quickly went to open it, letting it swing wide as an invitation for him to come in.
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Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2025 9:42 pm
Mason was almost vibrating with excitement as he made his way to Halia's apartment. He couldn't wait to share this with her - it was all too fitting, Mason thought, that she be one of the first people to find out about what had happened to him, since she was the one who had been his doorway into all of this magical stuff in the first place (if 'doorway' could mean 'person who saved his bacon from a youma', anyway).
"Hi," Mason greeted brightly, hoping the slightly manic expression his face didn't scare her or give himself away. "How're you? You been okay?" Excited as he was, Mason's little Madeline-voice in his head couldn't help but enforce rules of politeness, even now. "Keeping safe with...you know, everything?"
Mason had never been to Halia's apartment before; he opened his mouth to say that it was a nice place she had here, but then he actually looked around and immediately decided against it, because the place was actually kind of...
Well, it was kind of sad, and the Madeline-voice in his head reminded him that if he didn't have anything nice to say, not to say anything at all.
"It's cool you live alone," Mason said instead, giving her another wide smile. "I think I'd go crazy if I was by myself all the time. Twin thing - there's always another person right there, y'know?" Mason shook his head and tucked his hands in his pockets, too antsy to actually sit down. Should he do it now? Should he ask if he could? Should he tell or should he show? He just wanted her to know already, so they could talk about it!!!
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Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2025 9:47 pm
Halia stepped out of the way and closed the door behind him before taking a seat on the couch that made up 90% of the furniture in her living room. The apartment was sparsely decorated, though there were a few odd trinkets here and there, as well as a pile of what looked like scales on top of a small bookshelf. She was acutely aware of just how bare her living area was, and prior to now, it had never bothered her. Gesturing to the spot beside her on the couch, she looked up at him with a quizzical expression. He seemed to have more energy than usual, and that was saying quite a lot. "I've been on my own since the day I turned 18. It's not much, but it's mine, and it's home. Being alone has always been... easier, I think." At least until now, until her world became so much bigger, and so much more magic filled. "But yes, I've been well, safe and all that." The dark circles under her eyes begged to differ in regards to "being well" but she didn't elaborate much. "Is everything alright, Mason? You seem... jittery?"
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Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2025 9:50 pm
"And I haven't even had any caffeine," he joked, giving her another grin. He did, in fact, notice the circles under her eyes, and other different circumstances he would have asked about it, asked if he needed to text her every night to make sure she was going to bed on time, but his mind was elsewhere at the moment, and he needed to get through it before he lost his nerve.
"Is this--it's like...safe...to...do magic stuff here...right?" Mason said, glancing around the apartment. "Should I, like, close the blinds, if I were to, hypothetically, have something to show you, maybe?"
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Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2025 9:54 pm
An eyebrow shot up into her bangs and Halia stared Mason down. Was he...? Well s**t. "Preferably I would have magic stuff not done here. When I power up, I go to a little park nearby. Chaos can sense Order power signatures and auras, so it could potentially out someone to power up or down within their own home." Her eyes narrowed at him a bit. "Do you have something you'd like to tell me, Mason?" If this went how she thought it was about to, they were going to have to sit and have a very serious conversation.
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Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2025 10:04 pm
Mason pouted, big time. He'd been afraid of something like that - well, okay, not of 'power signatures' and 'auras', whatever that meant, but of some reason why it might not be safe to show her here.
"I don't suppose you'd be up for a walk to the park just for fun?" Mason tried with a winning smile, but eventually just heaved a big sigh and flopped down next to her on the old, ratty, well-loved couch.
"I think this magic stuff is catching," Mason said, his tone playfully droll but his eyes still excited, "because I was minding my own gosh dang business the other day and then BAM!, I have a flower crown and there's a cat that can talk--did you know there are talking cats??" Mason said, momentarily distracted from the main news.
"Anyway I guess I'm magical too! I guess I have been the entire time, but nothing even a little big magical happened to me before we met, so I'm pretty sure this is somehow your fault," he finished with a teasing grin. "I'd shoooow you but noooo, my auuuura..."
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Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2025 10:09 pm
Oh. Yes. This went exactly where she feared it would. Halia took a breath and rubbed her face. "Yes, they're called Mauvians. They awaken senshi like myself." She peered at him through her fingers before flopping back against the back of the couch. "I guess that means you and I need to have a serious discussion then. Because this isn't all fun and games and glitter. People die. There have been horrible, horrible things that I have seen, and I have only been doing this for two years."Was it her fault? Was there just some seriously weird curse on her family or something that made everything they touched come up magical? That had to be it. "Considering a good chunk of my family is all magical, I wouldn't even be shocked if it really was somehow my fault." Her voice sounded tired and she made herself sit up. "Before I get into this, do you want some tea? I made tea and I'm grabbing myself a cup." She gestured to the gorgeous tea service on the counter, more than happy to share.
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Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2025 10:19 pm
Mason's eyes flicked to where she pointed; he'd been so excited he hadn't even noticed it. If he was going to be a Page of Earth, he'd have to start paying more attention to his surroundings, lest more dogmonsters roll up and try to eat his face.
"Tea sounds great," he said with a smile. "And I don't think it's actually your fault. Or if I did, I'd still think I should be saying thank you, even if I now seem to be like a big cartoon steak to dogmonsters everywhere," he added with a chuckle and a shake of his head.
"I'm not the same as you," Mason said, once she'd stood and begun to busy herself with the tea. "I mean, the same...thing." Mason gestured vaguely at her, indicating her outfit and overall Senshi-ness.
"The cat didn't...awaken me. I just...I literally just picked up a stick in the park the other night and then woosh, whole new fashion choices." Mason paused, adding somewhat sheepishly, "I mean, I guess it wasn't just a stick. I was trying to rescue the cat--Mauvian. Because a dogmonster youma was chasing it. So I was chasing after them--cause I didn't know the cat could talk at that point, y'know, I thought it was just a regular cat having a really bad night--so I wanted to keep the cat from getting eaten so I chased after them and grabbed a stick to I guess...I guess I don't know what good I thought the stick would do, it's not big enough to like, bonk anything on the head or anything, but--but then poof, and next thing I know I'm like, doing a back-handspring onto roofs and stuff."
It had been far less graceful than that, but...well, she didn't need to everything about that night, right?
Mason shrugged as he finished his story and gave her a winning smile, but he could already tell - he was going to be in trouble for this, probably something about not chasing after dogmonsters alone in the middle of the night with naught but a dubious stick to defend himself with...
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Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2025 10:25 pm
"You should have called me. I could have come and helped." Still, there was a smile on her face. "You did good though, and I'm sure the mauvian was thankful for your assist." Pouring two cups of tea, she returned to sit beside him on the couch, holding one out to him. "You're a knight, then. Knights and senshi work together, though fundamentally have a lot of differences in our powers and abilities, as well as our origins. Did the mauvian explain anything to you? What sort of questions do you have so far?" She was calm and matter of fact as she spoke, though her brow creased slightly with worry. He was so sweet and so trusting, and it deeply worried her that he would get himself into trouble.
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Posted: Wed Jun 04, 2025 10:36 am
Mason was momentarily distracted, fascinated by the teacup she handed to him. The thing was beautiful, and Mason couldn't help but think Madeline would lose her freaking mind over this thing. She was really the tea-drinker between the two of them, but because she loved tea, there was tea around the house, which meant that Mason also ended up drinking a lot of tea, mostly just because it was there.
Mason took a sip, raising his eyebrows slightly as the taste washed over his tongue. It was actually delicious, and delicious in a way that made him want to down the whole thing, but it also felt expensive, which made him think that little sips were probably the way to go.
Regardless, it did calm him down a little, in spite of himself. He took another careful sip, holding the teacup so gingerly - if he broke it, Madeline would kill him and not even know why.
"Mostly just, like - how am I supposed to fight those youma things? My little stick is - I mean, it's just a stick. If it can make anything else happen, like you did that one time, I haven't figured out how, and I'm pretty sure that just hitting it with a stick won't do the trick."
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