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 Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2012 5:22 pm
"Modest," Tian Yue insisted. "And someone has to make up for Zhijian's hatred of clothing." There was a faint scrape, and then a sudden rush of air as something very large suddenly took up far less space. The Dragon King must have had a robe nearby, because only a moment later Tian Yue walked into view, pulling his hair back into a ponytail before crouching to examine the bag with interest. "I am told it is a great, glorious thing to be such a large creature, and my size serves the Crown's purpose well, but it's also terribly inconvenient at times," he said, smiling as he found the tea.
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Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2012 5:41 pm
"Ah, yes, the Dragon-cat." Tien's gaze followed him as he moved past to examine the bag. "I don't doubt it, when the rest of the world seems to be fashioned for things much smaller than yourself." She eyed him up and down, eyes widening a little after a moment. "Speaking of...were you this tall last time I saw you?"
Trickery hadn't noticed last time, with everything a muddled mess upstairs after just waking. If he stood properly he had a foot height advantage over her. "Not that it matters really." Now she was the one babbling, just a little. "Oh...I see you found the tea, hopefully you like it."
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Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 10:39 am
"Was I?" Tian Yue looked up from his inspection of the bag. "I know when I ascended at last into my rightful glory, my human shape changed considerably. The shape I had used could not contain my true self, I suppose. It hurt," he added, grimacing.
The grimace vanished at the reminder of the tea, though. "I am sure I will. It smells excellent. There are some lovely new plantations taking root, but their cultivars are young. It will take time to breed back complexity and depth."
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Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 1:08 pm
"Makes sense." It had hurt too, when her host's body had grown some to accommodate her and that had only been a little bit. She couldn't quite fathom the pain of growing that much at once.
Tien nodded in agreement to the other comment. "Indeed, but those mortals are quite ambitious, I'm sure they'll find a way. Especially if one day I let it slip who I gave the tea to." She grinned, almost like a little chesire cat.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 5:21 pm
"Hmm." Tian Yue smiled. "Have you found many followers, then? It seems I can barely walk through the common areas without tripping over someone who wants to bow before me. Or shout at me, which is a bit less enjoyable... oh, this is nice..." He'd found the coffee now, and was sniffing at the beans in obvious delight.
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Posted: Sat Feb 04, 2012 6:12 pm
"Sort of...they don't know who I am, not really but somehow a few trust me." Tien closed her eyes and her features shifted; hair turning auburn and curling, eyes turning a paler green, wings fading. She looked like a mortal woman. "This is who they see, when they see me. I'll probably tell them the truth eventually, though I haven't decided when just yet."
Her hand ran through the curls, biting back a giggle as he sniffed the coffee. Quite likely that was a sight only Toki and herself had seen the likes of. "I'm glad its to your liking."
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Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 1:40 pm
"Ah, yes - you too can change your aspect," Tian Yue said, after a moment. He'd forgotten about that, and as he got to his feet he gave her a look of pure curiosity. "How far does your shifting go? Could you, say, put on scales as well?"
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Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 2:09 pm
"In theory, I can be anything I please...can't say I've ever tried that though." It was part of who she was, after all you could only play so many tricks as yourself before it caught up with you. Her gift to shapeshift wasn't quite what it once was just yet. Too many loose ends left, perhaps it would get better with time? She could certainly try if he asked it of her. What was the worst that could happen, it wouldn't work? If it did though..oh the possibilities!
While he studied her she closed the space between them, letting the guise slip away as she walked. "Is that your way of asking for me to try, hn?" Trickery smiled, resting a hand against his chest, catching in his robe with the intent of tugging on it to get him to bend down a little. She could've been more direct with this had he not stood up, but she could improvise.
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Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2012 4:42 pm
"Call it... professional curiosity. From one shifter to ano- huh?" What was she doing? He gave her a bemused look. "What is it?" Maybe she wanted to whisper something to him? He bent towards her.
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Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2012 4:58 pm
It felt like an echo of a memory from a lifetime ago, when her host had done almost the same thing; confessing her feelings Crispin, taking the chance rather than letting the moment pass leaving things awkward and unsaid. Though, the Goddess was considerably less clumsy about it than the inexperienced girl had been. She rocked up onto her toes and pressed her lips to his once she was able to reach without fear of falling over.
It was a gentle and sweet kiss, though it wasn't flightly or feather light either. This was the only way that felt right to declare her feelings toward him. Her heart raced and grip tightened on his robe. The question remained, how did he feel about her?
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Posted: Sat Feb 11, 2012 3:54 pm
It took a moment for the Dragon King to process what was happening, but once he did his eyes snapped open, wide and startled. He pulled back with a jerk, breaking contact, then paused.
A moment later he sank back down to the ground with a thump.
"Tien, I... you..." He was looking up at her now, not with distaste or revulsion, but with confusion and surprise. It felt like they had spent all their new lives dancing around this, and now the Dragon King's mind was in a small state of chaos. He remembered Crispin, and Morgan, though Tien was not her host, and yet part of her was and part of him was too, but overshadowing all of it the enormity of Tien Lung's ancient love... and the enormity of the irrevocable loss of the beloved.
He had a vague sense that gods weren't supposed to be emotional messes. That way of thinking was quite possibly part of the problem.
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Posted: Sat Feb 11, 2012 4:27 pm
Tien's cheeks were flushed and she stared wide eyed at him at him when he stumbled backwards. A sight she might've found humorous if not for the situation. She knelt before him and reached out a trembling hand, resting it atop one of his. Her voice was quiet when she spoke. "I always make a tangle of things like this..." Her hand squeezed his gently. "...but you deserved to know."
She smiled faintly, heart lightened a little by the fact that there seemed to be no outright revulsion in his expression, the rest of it was entirely understandable. Her gaze never left his as she spoke, but the volume of her voice dropped considerably. "And, I know its selfish to ask, but I would seek to court you...if you would allow it."
It was a risk to ask, but at this point 'what the hell' as her host would've said.
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Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2012 12:33 pm
"I... I had not thought about it," Tian Yue said, looking down at the floor. "Tien Lung and Universe have always been paired; myself-Shaiming took it for granted that he - I - we would pick up where we left off. And all either of us managed was a sort of stuttering, awkward dance around each other, hah, like planets with wobbly orbits that only circled and never spoke. And then Gehenna took him, and..."
His hands, resting in his lap now, clenched into tight fists. "I am Starscale with no stars. A lost planet with nothing to circle, however awkwardly. The thought of loving another, I..." A tear traced down one cheek, unbidden. "Part of me cries no, never! I am Starscale and shall have no other! and another part screams but then I will be alone forever, with no voice in this new sky to answer mine; are there not other suns? and then there is the me who was Crispin who loves the you who was Morgan, and there are so many voices and I do not know which is truly mine."
He took a long, ragged miserable breath, then looked up at her through the pale fall of his hair. "But I do not want to circle, circle and never speak any more. Not with anyone; not with you. I... care for you, Tien, I do. I want to know you better - you, as you are now, not as you were once, or just one part of you, the Morgan-part. Rather than circling. Crown above, why am I so abysmally awful at talking?"
That last was said with a self-depreciating smile, and a bit of a hiccup. Which was kind of embarrassing.
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Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2012 2:00 pm
Tien listened as he poured out his grief to her. When he was done she lifted a hand and reached out to brush his tears away, leaning in to press a soft chaste kiss to his cheek afterward. "You'll find the path and voice that are truly your own, Tian Yue. You are a capable dragon, I have faith in you." She would say more, but she wasn't quite sure how to put it to words. Confusion she understood and still felt somewhat, caught between the mortal and divine. The grief though, she hadn't reckoned how deep it ran but it made sense. Every time he looked at the sky it would be a fresh reminder...
I'm sorry, for forcing your hand, it was unkind. Is what her eyes seemed to say when she drew away, smiling softly. Tien didn't dare speak the words, not wanting to put another dent in his pride; she was grateful however that he had let some of his sorrow out, so she better understood. "I was a more than a little frightened, coming here to see you. The prospect of facing Cerberus, even in my current state, seemed less daunting than looking at your door. I'm glad I haven't entirely put you off with my forwardness." She took one of his hands in her own again, squeezing it gently.
Trickery continued to watch him after falling silent, smile widening and growing mischievous. It was an idea that would lighten the mood and make him truly smile. A smile suited him much better than sadness. A little balm on the wounds she had aggravated. "I do believe I said I would try to put on scales, would you still like me to try?"
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Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2012 3:07 pm
"No... no, I am... I am touched, truly," Tian Yue said, squeezing her hand back after a moment. "You were not to know. Let us... come to know one another? Crispin, and then Tian Yue, knew Morgan, but I do not truly know Tien, even though she wears no mask before me." He smiled, warm and genuine. "Let us renew our knowledge of each other, and base our friendship on that knowledge, rather than that of our hosts alone... and move from that point forward, in the direction that is most pleasing to us both."
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