[Demon] Tsetsiliya's Silo

[alpha lyrae]

______________________ ONE __ The Island __❧__m e t a

______________________ TWO __ After The Foggy Hell Comes ... ? __❧__r o l e p l a y

______________________ THREE __ Not To Be Forgotten __❧__s o l o

______________________ FOUR __ The Wheel __❧__s o l o

______________________ FIVE __ Rage-Kwan-Do __❧__r o l e p l a y

______________________ SIX __ Time To Breathe __❧__r o l e p l a y

______________________ SEVEN __ The Fall __❧__s o l o

______________________ EIGHT __ Press Start To Continue __❧__r o l e p l a y

______________________ NINE __ Here Comes The Sun __❧__s o l o

______________________ TEN __ HALP, My Ball is Stuck! __❧__r o l e p l a y

______________________ ELEVEN __ 1 + 1 = Prom __❧__r o l e p l a y

______________________ TWELVE __ The Devil is in the Details __❧__r o l e p l a y

______________________ THIRTEEN __ Three's a Rowdy Bunch __❧__s o l o

______________________ FOURTEEN __ Amityville Prom __❧__r o l e p l a y  

[alpha lyrae]

❧____The Island____❧
To be addressed in several parts: I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII


In which Tsetsiliya is put to the ultimate test and during which 8 growth points are gained.

THE ISLAND: Boat Assignments

Tsetsiliya watched Arel walk off the stage and immediately started to feel doubtful about ever signing up on this trip. Granted, she had felt this same doubt upon deciding to embark on the Christmas Town raid as well, but back then she had no idea what she was getting into. As the other students began to mill about her, she glanced apprehensively towards the gnomes that were moving around between the masses as well. Would she know anybody on her boat? Did that even matter at this point?

Thinking back on the Christmas Town incident, she had ended up becoming particularly close with those who were in her car. So now, she was nurturing a secret hope that this would turn out the same way. Besides, perhaps news of signing up for this - whatever this was - would appease her parents, since they had been none too pleased with her during her last skelephone call (the poludnica remembered this with a touch of embarrassment, as it prompted memories of what had happened afterwards).

As a gnome passed by and offered a piece of paper, Tsetsiliya took the list and scanned it for her name. Ah, here she was - Boat 6. She didn't see any of her friends' names on the list, but there were a few that sounded vaguely familiar (one of them, she was certain, was the girl she had bid on at the Scarentine auction). Immediately she started to feel anxious - not that she minded meeting new people (or at least that's what she told herself), but why did situations such as these have to be so nerve-wracking?

As she silently studied the list and swallowed her nerves, she began mentally packing her smallish bag. She already decided to wear her warmest sash - she was definitely going to learn from last time.

THE ISLAND: Boat Six - The Overboard

As she boarded the ship, Tsetsiliya began to feel a little nauseous. Had she over-prepared for the trip? Under-prepared? Needless to say, she had stuffed her rucksack to the best capacity she could, with things she had thought would be practical: warmer clothing (a warmer sash, specifically), wrapped packages of her grandmother's eye bread (and enough to share, if she knew anybody on board), bandages, a few homemade remedies from her mother's stock.. oh, she terribly wished she could have brought Casimir. At least she would have known him on board this ship, since she didn't really know anybody else.

The chaperoning teacher on the ship was one she had never seen, but she couldn't help but notice how.. displeased she looked with the state of the current students. Had they done something wrong, or was this one of those teachers that seemed perpetually grumpy? The poludnica couldn't be sure, and instead took to looking around at those who were aboard. She recognized Aksaja, as well as Alcyone and Sin from the Scarentine auction and the demon party.

As she contemplated talking to some of the others she knew (although saying she knew them was stretching it), she turned towards where Cloak was inviting any who were willing to participate in a round of fishing. In doing so, she felt her normal robes sway in a way that was unfamiliar to her, and a chill crept over her bare shoulders.

.. Bare?

She gaped down at her front, and for what was likely the hundredth time that month, she was wearing another evening gown. This one she did not own herself, but she had to admit it was rather pretty. Wringing gloved fingers together, she once again glanced around at the others on the deck. At least they all mirrored her in wearing formal dress; she likely wasn't the only one feeling embarrassed.

THE ISLAND: The Supplies Tent

The first thing that Tsetsiliya felt was warmth, before it faded into sharp cold. The shivers set in as she came to, and cracking a sleepy eye she was relieved to find they had landed somewhere. The vague outlines of students milled about, and she raised herself halfway up off the ground to get a better look around. Many of the students she didn't recognize from her ship; in fact, she was hard pressed to find somebody she had ridden with. There were a few people she did know, but they seemed.. preoccupied. She should not interrupt.

Pushing herself into a standing position, the poludnica felt the chill even moreso. Her teeth chattered and she set her jaw to quiet it. She hated, hated, hated cold. She rubbed her arms with sore fingers - they had clung so hard onto whatever it was she had grabbed before the students were tossed from the boat during the crash. Glancing down, she noticed it was a lone suitcase, now lying cracked open with mysterious clothes spilling out. It made her miss her warm robes, which were now lying on the bottom of the ocean; instead she was wearing some mess of the ball gown that Professor Winter had insisted they wear, now bearing a hem shorn to her knees and other embarrassing tears. Her cheeks went crimson, which dispelled some of the shivering - there was one positive aspect to that.

Tsetsiliya drifted over towards the supply tables, having noticed a few students picking up the backpacks. She grabbed a backpack for herself, before moving down towards the weapons table. Immediately she thought of Christmas Town, and her cowardice on the boat left a bad taste in her mouth.

She would most certainly amend it, that was for certain. She steeled her gaze and considered her weapon carefully. Wood was too easily broken so she moved away from the table leg and tree branch; however the blunt mace caught her eye. She rode the momentary confidence and picked it up. The object slid off the table in her grasp and drooped in her arms, the head planting firmly into the ground.

Her resolution wavered. Perhaps another weapon? Her eye started to slide hopefully towards the weaponry table, but she shook her head. "No, this one." Why did she have to be so stubborn about most everything?

THE ISLAND: Boss Fight

As soon as she had wandered away from the main encampment, Tsetsiliya had found herself lost in the fog. It had been lingering around the beach, but the further she walked, the thicker it grew. It enveloped her quickly and she didn't have a chance to backtrack before the sounds of battle came to her ears.

Where was everybody? What was happening on the outside?

Panic rose in her as she began to dart around as best she could in the fog. The mace did not help her as it stumbled over rocks and driftwood. In some places, sound became louder, and in others dimmer, but she couldn't find a way out. At last, a source of light beckoned to her, along with the loud war cries of the other students. She emerged from the fog as the battle concluded, the last students dealing their blows. In the confusion, she watched the cloaked figure drag Carthusia away and disappear. She nearly dropped the mace she was still lugging about, since all it was doing was impeding her progress in stumbling out of the fog to mix with the other students.

"C-Carthusia.." Her heart weighed heavily. The demoness had been very kind to her, and now she had been captured by whatever was on this island. Tsetsiliya had been so useless. What could she do now? With a nervous glance at the other students, her pale eyes turned towards one of the clues, a map.

A lighthouse, a town, and a cornfield. Could Carthusia be in any of those places? She hoped to Jack the ghoul was okay. Even then.. what to do now?

THE ISLAND: Far From Home, Cornfields PRP

"I am.. very much uncertain myself." Tsetsiliya's eyes scanned the cornfield around them for any sign of activity, but being so short, the stalks had the obvious advantage over her. "Perhaps a test of some kind, maybe?" The whole trip had unnerved her quite a bit, and she was thinking that the last school trip to Christmas Town was likely to blame for that. She had gone on that with wide-eyed optimism, ready to write home about her exploits and braced herself for challenges.. but she had not quite expected what Christmas Town had dished out to her. She was a little more seasoned now, not a pro by any stretch of the imagination but it was best to keep one's wits about them.

When Gabrian had noticed his weapon, Tsetsiliya leaned over to take a look, and indeed her eyebrows shot up at the sight. This was definitely not the standard-issue weapons that they had been given. "What is causing that.. ?" she asked to no one in particular. The snake motif was a reflection of the nix himself, it seemed to her, so perhaps that meant that their weapons were malleable. Her eyes started to fall towards her own mace when a voice called out to them. She stalled and turned around, squinting at the approaching figure.. it seemed to be the rabbit nagual, Alessa. This was certainly good news! However she had come alone, and it was looking as though it would be difficult to find the others just as easily. As Tsetsiliya watched the newcomer scan their faces, the ghoul settled on hers and tried to appear friendly enough, but her smile wavered a little as she clarified the poludnica's name.

"Y-yes," she stammered in reply, but the poor ghoul looked so little distracted with worry that she may not have heard her. Tsetsiliya chewed on her lower lip as her she rubbed the arm that held onto the mace in an effort to warm herself a little. Alessa was likely thinking about the others, and maybe the sight of Tsetsiliya instead of, say, the ghoul's boilfriend, was a little disappointing. Her anxieties began their manic dance in her brain, and immediately doubts started pouring in from all sides. This was likely a mistake, she would only be burdening them.. all of these thoughts whirled around and each felt like poison. She knew it was wrong to think this way, but it was how her train of thought always progressed.

However she was no fool; running about by herself on this strange island was not the smartest plan. Besides, the main goal in her mind (despite whatever unclear desires the faculty had) was finding Carthusia and making sure she was safe.

Even with the tension of her teammates and her own anxieties, the sight of the corn stalks comforted her. A lingering reaction in her blood, perhaps, seeing as she had never been in a proper field before; her family had somewhat of a field on their property, but it was a garden compared to this. Leaning the mace's handle against her leg for a moment, she peeled the glove from her hand and reached out to touch the stalk. The stalks were a rich shade of green, and one long nail peeled into the husk at the top to reveal the soft gold within. It was refreshing to know the food was ripe.

"I-If anyone is b-being hungry, the corn is ripe.. yes?" She gestured to the husk she had just opened a little more with a hopeful smile. The ghoul could not ease anxieties or tell them where their friends are, or even why they were on this Jack-forsaken island, but some food on their stomachs might let them think a little more clearly.

THE ISLAND: Underground Labs

Tsetsiliya had been marginally pleased with the wrapping job she had done on Ren's hand, despite hurrying along on the bumpy road. The white fabric of the underskirt worked nicely for bandages, and appraising Alessa's wrappings on the other side, she felt the ghoul had done a very satisfactory job. The foursome emerged from the corn, and casting a glance back over her shoulders, she saw some of the shadows linger behind. A few kept on doggedly though, but this time she felt a little more confident. There were others with her, and they were her friends.. at least she thought (and hoped) so.

The area they emerged into had everything was grayed out. The ghoul shuddered and gripped at her skirt; while the cornfield was unnerving enough, the lack of natural light caused the butterflies in her stomach to whirl at rapid pace. It was cold here, colorless.. she did not like it one bit.

The sight of the open grave was strange enough, and the poludnica stalled a little when she noticed the congregation around it. Unable to discern their shapes, she wondered if she were walking straight into the shadows that had followed her. They were no longer behind her, as another glance told her. But with a wary approach, their forms became clearer, and she recognized them as fellow students, thank Jack. A few of them she recognized from around campus, and one of them had fallen into a grave. A flash of red hair and purple told her who it was.

She smiled wide at LW as Gabrian called to her, and Ren awoke on his back, calling for Alessa. Again the pangs of loneliness hit, as two seemed to go with two, but she swallowed it for the moment.

"Please be watching of your hand.. it is clean for now, but please, not to strain." She spoke calmly and gave the gryphon a smile before turning away and allowing him and the nagual their sought-after time together. It was how things are, and she would not stand between that. A scan of the crowd brought her a treat in the sight of her old friend and Krumm Car team member, Belladonna. The witch ghoul was one of the first friends she had made while at the school, and it brought her much relief to see her among the others. "B-Belladonna!" she called, this time unable to contain her relief. She felt there was no need to.

THE ISLAND: The Dark Cove, Final Battle

Tsetsiliya stumbled out of the portal, her hands splayed out to stop an impending fall, but luckily (or unluckily, depending) there were plenty of students backed up to prevent it from happening. She blinked and righted herself fully.. everyone was stopped. What was going on? Staying still was never a good option in a place of danger.

Loud voices, pushy voices, carried over the crowd, and Tsetsiliya turned her head just in time for the blades to descend and the sound of panic to rise in the group of students.

She dropped into a low crouch when the blades drew near and covered her head with her hands. A few hairs were shorn from her head in the sudden movement, and a chill danced up her spine; she had to move, she had to move. The moment she saw an opening, she dashed through as fast as her body would allow her to go. All around, the shadows of students being struck down danced at the edges of her vision. Some literally fell in pieces before dissipating, and her stomach heaved into her mouth. But her nerves won the battle and she kept moving. Where were her friends? She had to find someone, anyone.

"A-Alessa! Belladonna, Carry?" She attempted to call out ahead of her but her voice came in nothing but a frightened whimper. It was likely for the best, seeing as she was moving in the direction that the two from earlier (the ones who had caused this) had gone. But from the scattered few she did see on her way, none looked familiar. She was.. really in this alone, wasn't she? Another duo was stalled before her momentarily. It was the long hair trailing behind such an elegant figure that gave Tsetsiliya her first sign of relief since reaching the cove.

"B-Belladonna! Carry!" she cried in a hoarse whisper and jogged forward. She reached a hand out to each, ready to grasp their arms and know they were real and here with her. Peering over their shoulders, she saw other familiar faces: Barth and West were here, the dog boil from earlier as well. She also saw the cause of the hold-up: the two strangers were stalled, talking about pendants. Some of the students had pulled theirs out, the glows dancing as they moved across the room, looking for something (a key, is what one of the figures said?). Tsetsiliya felt her heart drop into her stomach.

Something was not right. Not that it mattered anyway, since she did not have a pendant herself, but.. searching for what these strangers wanted.. she felt it had to be a trap.

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____After The Foggy Hell Comes ... ?____❧
To be addressed here


In which Tsetsiliya finds great relief.

After The Foggy Hell Comes ... ?

Tsetsiliya stumbled through the portal as she had done before entering the cove, this time nearly tripping over a small kitsune demon who was currently clinging to someone and sobbing her eyes out. The poludnica blinked dazedly and raised her head to properly scan the crowd. Her eyes widened as she took in the whole of everything.

So many faces. Her heart swelled at the sight of her peers, both at familiar faces and those not so near to her heart. So many happy reunions, tears, laughter, hugs.

It was real. They were here. They were together.

She closed her eyes and soaked it all in. They were safe, thank Jack, they were all together again. For the time being, she kept to the back of the crowd and all of her previously muted emotions rushed out. She let it come, welcomed it, even - and tear after tear slid down her cheeks. It wasn't the frightened bawling she had done earlier in the cornfields, complete with running nose and short breath, but rather.. this felt different.

She was not one to cry, but she was just so terribly relieved. An idle hand reached up to wipe some of the moisture from her eyes but she could not fight the small smile on her lips. A moment to compose and push away any lingering lonelinesses, then to pick through the throng of students to move on towards her dormitory. There would be time aplenty to catch up, but she still needed to get herself together.

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____Not To Be Forgotten____❧


]In which Tsetsiliya contends with her feelings about the events of the island, her friends, and herself.. as revealed through a skellyphone call to her grandmother.

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____The Wheel____❧


In which Tsetsiliya's overeagerness compels her to write up a plan for herself.

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____Rage-Kwan-Do____❧
To be addressed here


In which Tsetsiliya seeks to improve her fighting skills and seeks a new rageful master to learn.

Rage-Kwan-Do

Despite having asked his help through Groanspring, and despite the fact that West had agreed.. Tsetsiliya was still feeling nervous.

Perhaps she had gone about this whole idea in haste; she was not the fighting type. But memories of the island taunted her, plaguing her dreams with those ghostly images of those cloaked figures, and the way that Ren had.. she couldn't even bear to think of it. The fact of the matter was that she had failed in her promise - she had said she would not let any of her friends die. The promise was rather null and void now, seeing that the portal was fixed and everyone was brought back good as new (any lasting damage to the psyche notwithstanding), but the dull, queasy feeling in the pit of her stomach would not let her forget that she had failed.

Tsetsiliya was nowhere near strong enough to protect anybody; she had barely been strong enough to protect herself. But she was on her way to the wrath demon's dorm room for the very purpose of correcting this. It was time to properly learn to fight, and to learn from (what she considered to be) an appropriate teacher. The poludnica had felt such rage following her friend's death.. what better teacher in learning to harness that than a wrath demon?

Her dress was tied at her waist sash to allow for more movement, her heirloom belt left at her dorm for today. A pair of cotton slacks were tucked into her boots, and sleeves were rolled up. On the whole, she looked ridiculous, but it was functional. Her descent to the lower floors was easy, and now she found herself facing West's door.

Steeling her nerves, she knocked on his door. There was no room for doubts now, because she was ready for this.. she had to be.

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____Time To Breathe____❧
To be addressed here


In which Tsetsiliya wants to help two certain ghouls she has been terribly worried about through the use of fresh treats and bad movies.

Time To Breathe

Tsetsiliya stared at the scare package sitting on her desk, then around at her newly-cleaned dormitory as her hands wrung together nervously. There was no sign of the neglect it had seen over the past few days, and a bit of rearranging had made plenty of room available in the center. At times like this, she thought with a bitter smile, she was glad the demon dorms were rather luxurious and provided so much room. She went about to and fro, fussing with small details, before pausing in front of the newly-arrived couch. With a nudge it was pushed back towards the wall.. then deciding against that, she pulled it forward again.

That would have to do. But her restless eyes would not stop canvassing the area. Her Celestial Wolf, Casimir, looked up from his bed beside her own and watched her with curious eyes, and she absently stroked his head.

"Okay.. yes. Yes, I am going now." It was normally a bad sign when one started talking to themselves, but Casimir paid it no mind; after all, this had become quite commonplace in the past few days, ever since his master had returned from somewhere that had not smelled quite right. It lingered in her eyes, in the ruined clothes she discarded immediately upon returning.

Upon bidding him farewell, Tsetsiliya stepped out into halls and hurried down the stairs to the next floor, skirts bundled in her hands. She had to get to the monster dormitories, and even with that though a thousand more doubts popped into her mind. That the ghouls wouldn't be interested in a get together, or would not be at home.. but still, it was worth a try. She hadn't seen hide nor tail of LW, Alessa, Gabrian, or Ren. Her apprehensions lingered about approaching the boils first, so it was with finding the ghouls that her hopes rested. The need to check on them and make sure they were handling things well was high in her mind (as for her, she was doing fine - busy busy busy was the best way to be!), but she also carried a more secretive hope. She hoped that they had not forgotten about her, nor that it was too presumptuous that she wanted their friendship so desperately.

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____The Fall____❧

It began when her foot wouldn't stop tapping under her desk.

Tsetsiliya was hunched over her homework, eyes boring into the Botany textbook without really seeing it. The focus became blurred and hazy until she would give a fierce shake of the head. No, she had to finish this. The revised list she had made was pinned to the wall just above the desk, to keep her focused and oriented on her task.

To keep her from thinking about The Island, or her guilt. Her days were busy, even when they did not need to be: her training with West mandated that she keep practicing, so a couple of hours were devoted to her shapeshifting. She had begun baking without stop, and although her dorm smelled absolutely delicious, the treats sat atop her boudoir wasting away. She studied books she had read before again, three, even four times. She took longer walks around the campus, before doubling back and making those longer walks into long runs. Oh yes, she was very busy. But it didn't preoccupy her dreams.

When she slept, she saw the Island. She saw her friends falling one by one and she, frozen to the spot like the coward she was, unable to help them. Rocks crushing them, they would give her that same contemptful look that she had seen on Ren's face, which assured her of her weakness.

So she slept less in recent nights, and filled each day to the brim to forget. Except that now.. she could not muster enough energy to keep up the fill. Her hand slammed down onto the blurring text in frustration, and her desperate eyes sought out the list.

"Y-yes, I will be skipping.. next task.." She tapped a free finger to the list and scrolled it over the paper, pressing hard. But it became obvious to her that she had a long way to go before she would be finished for today. Baking next? That could occupy some hours, but the thought of changing up her plans when she had been doing the same regime day in, day out.. needless to say, it threw her over the final edge.

What now?

Her heart was beating faster than she had ever known it to beat, and her eyes were making a rapid track to and fro about her room. It felt so tight in here. The book beckoned from the desk, calling, waving to her to come back and finish, but she could not calm down. Casimir whined from her bed and Lucja's head leaned down from her dresser with a concerned murring noise of her own. The poludnica clamped her hands over ears.

"< No more, >" she moaned, "< Please stop! >" The world was going so fast, her heart was unable to keep up, she was unable to keep up. Eyes squeezing shut, she crouched and tucked her head into her knees. "< No more, no more, no more.. >" But the world continued at its rapid-fire pace, and her heart lurched after it, but it was too much. Why couldn't she keep up? Was it because she had failed her friends on the Island?

LW, Gabrian, Alessa, Belladonna, Ren.. the gryphon's name still stung. The hateful look in his eyes, the way he had run from her.. the way he had fallen and she had done nothing. Perhaps she deserved to feel guilty, even if the events of the Island had been undone. Yes, it had been some Jack-forsaken training exercise, hadn't it? Slowly, shakily, Tsetsiliya rose to her feet as she reasoned with herself. The Island had happened.. and then again, it didn't happen. Her gaze lingered on the floor, and she traced the marvelous patterns in the rugs with her eyes, until they finally found the mirror.

The difference was noticeable, to say the least. Her head scarf had slipped nearly all the way off and now barely clung to the back of her loosened bun. Her hair had become a Corrividus' nest, with strays poking out everywhere and large clumps matted to her face by sweat. Her eyelids looked as though they would never stop twitching.

The face of a broken ghoul.

But no. No no no no no. This was nothing a quick trip onto the school grounds couldn't solve. Yes, fresh air. She nodded fervently and stood before the mirror, her shaking hands tucking in the loose strands of hair before restoring her scarf with surprisingly fast, jerky movements. She needed the regime restored, everything back to normal.

There. Now there was no sign of the ghoul who had been staring back just a few seconds prior. Yes, yes, her regime was fine, nothing at all to worry about. All it would take was some fresh air! For some reason the same words could not stop repeating in her head: fresh air does a body good, after all. Her lips quirked into an automatic smile, and she could feel the strain on them - good Jack, had she been smiling that hard for so long? With one more glance in the mirror, just to be sure, she headed out the door.

To her own mind, Tsetsiliya looked perfectly fine. This was only because she had casually chosen to ignore the deepening rings under her eyes, how her hair had been falling out so easily, and the constant trembling her hands and shoulders seemed to be doing these days. She ignored them, just as she tried to play off the nightmares and the horrid guilt she was wracked with every time the gryphon's face came to mind.

It would all be okay, wouldn't it?  

[alpha lyrae]

❧____Press Start To Continue____❧
To be addressed here


In which Tsetsiliya learns to slow down when things get overwhelming.

Press Start To Continue

Day after day of exerted energy was catching up to Tsetsiliya. Even though the sun was shining bright, her spirits were nothing short of low, and she was now shuffling slowly along the campus. Anybody who may have noticed her, or anyone she may have recognized did not register - they were merely blurred images to her tired, sleepless mind.

The island, more importantly, was catching up to her. She had been running around endlessly since returning. At some point she had stopped eating. There was simply no time for food nor sleep when she had so much to do. Training with West was eating up some time, practicing her shifting, studying of course, planting, checking on friends, walks, taking care of her minipets, cleaning, learning to bake.. so much to do! It was the only way she managed to keep her thoughts from lingering back to that fog, and that terrible island that waited on the edge of her mind.

But now, nearly a week later, she was at her limit. Ever since crying so readily in front of the others while on that horrid field trip, she felt on the edge of tears so often in recent days (although never actually crying, thank Jack). Tsetsiliya could barely pick up her feet, and even now she had no idea where she was going. She was merely wandering around campus aimlessly, without a goal in her mind for the first time in days.

A dislodged rock in the path came up to meet her, and te ghoul tripped, her lips whispered a soft, "Oh," as she tumbled to the ground. She was done. What was she thinking, trying to handle all of this at once? Her vision swam and the world dimmed, before she fainted cold on the ground.

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____Here Comes The Sun____❧


In which Tsetsiliya realizes everything is going to be alright.

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____HALP, My Ball is Stuck!____❧
To be addressed here


In which Tsetsiliya steps in to help rescue a wayward maceball for a ghoul.. and ends up getting goaded.

HALP, My Ball is Stuck!

Today was one of those crisp, blustery days that Tsetsiliya did not like very much. She was a demon who thrived in the noontime sun, and this afternoon chill did not make her very pleased. Still, she stuck to her regime, which included an afternoon walk (although she was doing a nice jog because of the cold). Normally her celestial wolf Casimir would accompany her, as he enjoyed stretching his legs as much as she did, but today it was her fae dragon Lucja that clung to her shoulders. The creature had made quite a show, hissing at any students they had happened to pass and curling protectively around the poludnica's neck.

Tsetsiliya sighed. Leave it to her overprotective minipet to like the cold and scare away anybody who might want to chat. She was still reeling from the recent events (not to mention incredibly embarrassed by them) and was, strangely, feeling a little peer-starved. Lucja was the last pet she had wanted to come along.

Regardless, as they jogged the path, her pace slowed as her eye caught something interesting. A short distance off the path, a firey-looking ghoul was scrambling up one of the dead trees. Tsetsiliya winced as the branch snapped and said ghoul went falling to the ground. What was she after? Immediately she was sidetracking, crossing the grass. Lucja's hissing grew louder as it, too, caught sight of the student. The way that this ghoul's face looked was half-comical, half-pitiful. A glance up into the branches, after a moment of quiet searching, revealed what she was likely after - a ball that was nestled pretty high up. Good Jack, had she really thrown it that far up? Eyes coming back to the ghoul, Tsetsiliya swallowed her nerves and mustered a timid smile as she approached close enough to hold a conversation.

"H-Hello," she ventured, "A-are you needing help getting your ball?" She was really doing better with this, the whole introduction thing. Not that she knew how well she could be of help. Lucja gave a sharp hiss and Tsetsiliya reached up to close its mouth. "Perhaps we can be assisting, yes?"

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____1 + 1 = Prom____❧
To be addressed here


In which Tsetsiliya realizes that not only is prom coming up, but that she has nobody to go with and must amend that, with help from an anonymous matching box.

1 + 1 = Prom

For a moment, Tsetsiliya couldn't believe she was really doing this. She stood in front of the newly-instated box with a slight frown, the questionnaire crinkling in her nervous hands. She flattened it again against the side of the building, making sure everything was right.

Her name was there - that was the important part (no matter how embarrassing it was).

What she was looking for, as well. Hopefully she wasn't too specific. Her history of fancy parties and deghoultant balls gave her somewhat of a fanciful notion of what she'd like, but rationally speaking there was no way she could ask that merely for a date to the Prom.

She was seeking a boil who was not shy, but was enough of a gentleman all the same. Somebody to stay engaged in conversation with, who wouldn't get bored with her and wander off. It seemed like she was asking for a bit much, and again she contemplated ditching the whole thing and having a personal movie night in her dorm room instead.

But no - she had set out to do this. Tsetsiliya had missed out at Prom at her last school, and it was not in her nature to quit after she had started something. The paper was filled out already, so what harm could it do? Part of her did it because of her own stubbornness, while the other part did it to ease some of her own guilt about how Scarentines had turned out.

Before she could overthink things again, she shoved the paper into the box and moved away quickly, face going a deep crimson. At least back in her dorm room, she could fuss in private until the results came out.

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____The Devil is in the Details____❧
To be addressed here


In which Tsetsiliya heads to the Maul for some dress shopping and ends up giving some impromptu advice.

The Devil Is In The Details

With the time for Prom looming.. much closer than she liked and a date (so to speak) in the wings, Tsetsiliya ventured into a place that she simultaneously thought she would have entered long ago or would not have entered at all.

The Maul was a very different sort of place than she was used to, full of eye-grabbing advertisements, mall shoppers milling to and fro, noise and chaos everywhere. Truthfully it was a little overwhelming; normally her clothes shopping was handled via mail order or personal tailor. Here among the other shoppers, she felt like a normal adolescent. Her parents (well, alright, namely her mother) couldn't dictate their opinions on what she was wearing, and everything was her own choice to make. Well.. her and the card her parents had given her for purchases, anyway. A short time spent wandering half-awed through the throngs brought her to the first of many teen-aimed clothing stores.

She had a mission in the Maul today. A dress was in order.

Unfortunately the first racks yielded nothing that seemed appealing enough - the color was off in some, the style in others. And as she tried one on and modeled it in front of the mirror in the changing room, another on different rack would beckon to her, and she liked what she wore less and less. It didn't help that her style of clothing was rather old-fashioned (thanks to her grandmother), and she had wanted to look a little more modern for the Prom, so to speak. Tsetsiliya had done enough deghoultant balls for a while and wanted away from the full-out ballgown look.

She frowned at the latest dress she was modeling in front of the mirror outside of the changing rooms. Turning this way and that, fussing with her hair, nothing seemed to make this one work. Oh, it had looked so pretty on the hanger! But that was the wonder of dresses, she supposed. This was an endless dance she had done with ballgowns before.

Oh well, onto the next dress.

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____Three's A Rowdy Bunch____❧


In which Tsetsiliya finds out who her date is. Or rather, dates.

 

[alpha lyrae]

❧____Amityville Prom____❧
To be addressed here


In which it's time for Tsetsiliya to live the teenage dream and attend her first prom.

Prom

Tsetsiliya hustled as quickly as her gown would allow. The thudding pulse of the music and the din of many conversations led her towards where she needed to be. As she approached the building, seeing a few nicely-dressed students milling about outside, she slowed her paces. Her nerves were doing their nervous tap dance in her stomach, but she took a slow breath and swallowed them back down - tonight was going to be fun. If going with one date was supposed to be entertaining, two might make it even better, even if it was a little out of the ordinary. So much so that she was unusually late since she had taken extra care to look nice.

... There was, however, the issue of finding her dates. She knew what Colette looked like, and thanks to Groanspring, she had an indication on what Petro looked like (it turned out they had exchanged a few questions earlier in the school year, and he had posted a nice picture of himself as his profile). Still, everyone was dressed up - what if they'd changed their hair? Would she recognize them? Oh, her nerves were making her a mess and she hadn't even gone inside yet!

It seemed to be a worry in vain, however, as she sighted a ghoul talking to a very tall, bare-legged boil near the entrance. The ghoul turned her head and Tsetsiliya's eyes lit in recognition. She raised her hand in a wave and started to walk over, calling as she went.

"C-Colette!" The ghoul looked very nice tonight, Tsetsiliya thought, and noted with pleasant surprise that they had each decided on cool colors for their gowns. It was a nice change of pace. She approached with a smile and color in her cheeks. "It is being nice to see you again!" As she spoke, the poludnica realized that it had been a rather long time since they had last met. With a glance of surprise, she recognized the boil she was talking to as the one who made up the third part of their group - Petro. "A-Ah!" Those few Groanspring correspondences aside, first meetings were still a little rough around the edges for her, and her already pinkened face flushed darker. "Y-You are P-Petro, yes? I-I am Tsetsiliya." Her smile was happy, albeit nervous, and she held out her hand to the boil in greeting. Eyes turning momentarily towards Colette, her smile seemed to relax a bit. "I-I am not knowing you two are meeting yet!"