|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Tue Dec 31, 2013 10:57 am
Who: Anastacia, Wasa, and Zeke
When: January 1st; early evening
Where: Wasa's Villa
Weather: Clear but crisp; your typical January day
Anastacia had been dozing in the backseat until Zeke's phone went off. The cheery ring was quickly silenced as the man at the wheel of the car answered, but the deed had been done and now the spider queen was blearily looking around her surroundings, forgetting where she was for a few brief moments. She had woken up with the sort of hunger heat would not sate, the sort that made her rune flicker dimly and often like a light on the verge of burning out. She had been actively avoiding large groups of people even after her talk with Cesc, but upon making her predicament known the Widow had been promised the key to Zeke's office at work and all the time in the world to spend there at her leisure if she accompanied him there today. The need of a hearty meal provided by some sick dog or cat or passing human had made her agree to those terms and there they had been until fifteen minutes prior. Anya had eaten well, suffered and survived the side effects of a viral breakfast in a relatively peaceful setting, and had kept herself entertained when she needed it thanks in part to Zeke's computer having games as well as her own travel bag of goodies. All the same, the day had been long for her and she hadn't fought the slow creep of sleep once she had settled into the warm leather interior of Zeke's Rapide.
"Yeah that's totally cool with me. I just left work so I can shoot right over there and get those to you before going home. ...Yeah I'm sure! When am I ever not?"
Zeke's laughter filled the car; a light, but wholesome sound. Anya grumbled and slouched down in her seat, but kept her eye on the man through his rear-view mirror. He hadn't noticed her thus far, but she was curious about the who's, what's, and where's of this out of the blue conversation. The phone call continued for several minutes before the person on the other end had to go.
"I'll see you in a lil while! ...Love you too, sis. Bye!"
She needn't be a rocket scientist to figure out who 'sis' was. The Italian woman's visage went through her head and with it came a plunging and gripping sensation in her chest. Save for certain occasions, the name 'Alex' was synonymous with 'Lab' and 'Lab' - to Anya - was now strictly a place she did not want to see the inside of. Hell, even the outside!
"We're not going to the Lab, are we?" She spoke up as Zeke pulled the car to a stop at a red light. Her voice made him jump.
"Maaaaaybe?" Zeke turned around in his seat and smiled at his Frei in a way that was so obviously him trying to avoid incurring her wrath. "I mean, I have to make a stop there, but it's not for you I promise." He raised his right hand and gave her a three-finger salute. "Scout's honor. There's a woman in Gambino who called the Lab to return her bottle and vial. Alex just wants me to swing over there, do my thing, and take those to Lab. Y'know, my standard stuff."
The frown on Anastacia's face did not falter, nor did she release her arms from their crossed position over her bosom. Ever since the jungle she had been vehemently against going to the Lab. In her mind, if she put so much as a wing in there she would be subjected to poking, prodding, and questioning - three things she neither wanted nor needed. Over the holiday she had kept well away from Alex, lest the woman attempt to do one, two, or all three to her. She didn't trust Zeke either - on many things since summer but especially this topic - and she eyed him warily even as he turned back around to continue the next leg of their trip.
"Do I have to go?"
"Well I'm already pulling onto the highway so...Yeah, kinda." A thin smile greeted her in the mirror, a look that was amused by her statement but also apologetic. "I know you don't want anything to do with it, and I promise you won't have to go inside when we get there. Cross my heart." And so he did. Anya sighed.
"Fine. But if this is a trick--"
"It isn't. Trust me, sweetheart."
---
A half hour later they were pulling into the driveway of the address Zeke had gotten from Alex and the vet gave a low whistle of awe. Anastacia leaned toward the window to see what he was making noises about, but for what felt like the longest time the source of the raver's wonderment was a big blur against the white sky and the white-covered earth. When the villa came into the nearsighted arachnid's field of vision she found her Guardian's whistle was not improperly placed. What stood before them had to be the largest home either of them had ever seen in person. There were windows everywhere over the face of the building and the lawn - although covered in snow - sprawled out from the home and stretched forever. Anastacia did not whistle but her mouth did open from the surprise.
"Brad would have a field day with this place," there was another laugh on Zeke's lips as he spoke, that awe settling down just fine in his voice. "Look at the size of it!"
"I see it, Zeke." Most of it, anyway. The villa was so large that its farthest end slipped back into a blur. Usually that was only reserved for the tops of skyscrapers. This home - and it was startling to think someone lived here - was like a skyscraper had fallen sideways. Zeke pulled in and parked right up front, leaving the car to idle as he turned around to look at Anya properly.
"D'you wanna come in with me? Seems like the kind of place that'd be right up your alley, Anya."
The vet grinned hopefully but internally Anastacia fumbled. Inside meant a new face and having to interact, but Zeke was right - this sort of place was among the things she liked. Period movies about lords and ladies had swayed her tastes in architecture to some degree and even the uncertain Frei could not deny there was an itch to see what lay beyond the doors in terms of decor and detail. Not only that, but she had been car-bound for nearly an hour and her long wings were needing to be stretched out. She would have to brave the cold, but she did that every year around this time. Still, the place was huge. They might be here for one person but how many really dwelled inside? She had gotten through Zeke's workplace today okay to say the least but she knew those people, however vaguely. Strangers were different...but on the other hand, strangers didn't know what she had done.
"I'll go." The words were slowly spoken, each one weighed heavily and sounding as though Anya was still debating her reply. Zeke did not miss those notes but still smiled all the same. If she needed to, he would take her back to the car no if's, and's, or but's about it.
"Okay. Let's just soak up a little heat first - it's getting chilly out there."
A few minutes later Zeke was whisking Anastacia from the car to the door. It wasn't windy out, but the air was still crisp, bordering on bitter as night started in from the East. The vet wasted no time in ringing the bell, shivering on the stoop as he had given his coat to Anastacia for an extra layer of warmth. The spider queen was not ungrateful for it. For her especially, the cold was an enemy and it didn't take long for her to start feeling sluggish. She huddled into her layers, murmuring into the scarf around her lower face for the owner of the obscenely large abode to hurry it up.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jan 01, 2014 11:52 am
The owner was not far away. In fact, just on the other side of the door, Wasa sat anxiously on a shield back mahogany chair. The fabric of her skirt had been smoothed over her knees so many times, she worried she'd find the weave warped into two lumps when she stood. She fluffed up the fabric once more just to reflexively pull the cloth tight over her knees once again. With a huff she shook out her hands, trying to shed some of the nervous energy.
She'd cleaned up the best she could. It helped that only a week prior Melisande helped set up the reception room and drawing room for a Christmas with a few of the Sigel's friends. The holly and swags were packed away the very next day but a few glittery sprays and gilded gladiolus were left in crystal decanters to help ring in the New Year. She had ducked into the rooms several times worrying if she should huck the dated arrangements but resigned herself to the reality that even if she did toss them in the closet right then and there, the glitter would still be around for weeks. At least the flowers gave proper context to all the sparkle. She should consider putting glittering arrangements in every room...
Beyond that, she had removed the rest of the white sheets off the furniture and dusted down the wood trim. Outside, Anya and Zeke stood in a swept out portico framed with bare wisteria vines stripped of their dead leaves just in time to recieve a fresh dusting of snow. She hoped it would be enough to impress. She didn't want one of Dr. Kyou's staff questioning his choice of guardian. She had to be more, um, capable home owner and a little less squatting hermit. Otherwise, what was to keep this man from taking the box that she had been carrying for so long and never contacting her again?
Wasa took a deep breath as she stood, watching the colors and shapes of two figures fragment and swim through the facets in the cut crystal of the windowed doors. This was where she found out how well she did... She gave her fitted waistcoat a last, straightening tug and reached for the door handle.
"Hello!" The word was clipped but high, a true effort at trying to be as welcoming as possible without coming off too...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Jan 06, 2014 2:18 pm
The door opened quicker than either of them expected. Zeke had turned to ask his ward if she was doing okay and the words barely left his lips before a gust of warm air hit him and a new face was looking the both of them over.
"H-H-Hi!" The veterinarian managed to say through chattering teeth. He was clearly shivering on the step though smiling despite his hunched posture and having his arms wrapped tightly around his chest. "W-We're f-f-f-f-from L-Lab three-oh-five! I'm h-here t-t-t-to s-s-see W-Wasa." He braved the chill to stick his right hand out and offer it for a shake.
Next to him Anastacia was also shivering and trying to retain the heat the heavy layers of winter clothing had soaked up. When she laid eyes on the woman at the door, the feeling that she should have stayed in the car gripped her. All at once she thought she had made a mistake coming up here and not just due to the cold air blowing the end of her ribbon to and fro. She should have stayed in the car or demanded Zeke take her back home. Stranger or not, she shouldn't be here. Internally Anastacia berated herself for letting him convince her so easily but also snipped at herself for choosing now of all times to balk. What was done was done, that part of her said, and with the car locked and the wind picking up she couldn't rightly turn back now. As though making an ominous point, a gust of wind blew up from behind and sent Anya's teeth chattering. The cold sank in more and the sluggish feeling spread all the farther throughout her partial form. The spider queen started leaning left. Inside was the only option now whether she liked it or not.
"H-Hey you okay An-Anya?" The vet turned as he caught his Frei tilting toward him out of the corner of his eye, worry coming up strong on his pierced face. He reached out to brace her but the spider queen righted herself just to get away from his touch.
"I'm fine. It's just the cold..."
She needn't say anymore. Zeke gestured to the interior of the home Wasa stood in the doorway of, looking between the woman there and the one at his side several times as he spoke.
"May w-we c-c-come in? C-Cold r-really isn't h-h-her best fr-friend."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Jan 07, 2014 8:39 pm
"That's me." Her cheeks went a bit rosy beneath her multi-lensed spectacles and not just because of the cold. She supposed she'd always look a little bit out of place in her own home. Nothing about her really sold the image of a Lady in her manor. "Come in, come in..."
As she stepped back to let them through the door she fumbled with a key chain until she produced a simple turnkey. "Let me turn up the heat a bit..." It was such a big house she tended to only heat one room at a time, donning a smoking jacket when she braved the hallways. She spun the key in a little slot near the light switch as she waved the pair in.
"It really is some extraordinary weather we are having, isn't it?" The warm air was slow to build, but a closed door was enough banish the worst of the chill. "Thank you for coming all this way. I've been quite anxious to meet someone, anyone... well... it's been awhile you see" She smiled awkwardly as she held out her hand. "I'm Wasa, like I said." She looked them both up and down, making it only about half way down the bundled form for the Frei before realizing that was all there was to see. A shiver struck her right then and there, though she knew better than to start stumbling over her words anymore than she already was. A Raevan... the excitement within her doubled at the sight of such a potent reminder of what this visit was all about.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 10:15 am
Zeke let Anastacia go before him as they made their way inside. Despite her reservations and her dislike of her man the Widow was grateful for this. Although the room beyond the door wasn't exactly seventy degrees, it was a far cry better than the gusty winter air she just left. Almost immediately Anya started to feel better.
"There's a heater over there," Zeke pointed out the nearby heat source to his Frei who floated over to it to wait for the coming warmth. When she was over there, Zeke turned around and smiled to Wasa, stripping off his hat and gloves. "Well that's winter for you. And it's nice to meet you, Wasa. I'm Zeke and that lovely lady over there is Anastacia, my Raevan."
He gestured to the wayward Frei who had stripped off her own gloves in order to warm her hands. At the mention of her name she looked over at the pair but immediately turned away so her back was to them. Ever since the jungle if there was something she most certainly didn't like, it was being stared at. The Virus Frei hunched over a little as well, trying to make herself appear smaller. Zeke wondered if maybe he should have brought her home before coming even though everything was now said and done. A worried frown touched his face briefly. He'd keep an eye on her.
Turning back to Wasa, the vet was all smiles and jovial nature as he was known for. He peered around the woman's home with the eye he had developed thanks to dating an architect and gave a low whistle as he admired the decor.
"Quite a place you have here. We couldn't stop staring when we came up the driveway!" The vet bounced on his heels, his green and purple ponytail swinging against his back. Picking up the case he had brought along with him from the Lab, the vet gestured to it and then looked at his host expectantly. "Since you said you've been waiting awhile, how about we get started? You have the honor of being my first appointment of the new year, you know!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 11:10 am
"Oh, thank you." She took a look around as if she had only just fallen into it rather than being in residence for the better half of a decade. "It's um, quite a lot to handle. N-not to say I can't handle a lot!" She shook her hands in front of her as she tried to cover her flub with a wide smile. "You can take a look around if you like." The invitation was directed more towards the distant Raevan than the man before her. "Melisande helped me do a little rearranging recently." Perhaps the namedrop was a little unnecessary, but the Frei seemed a bit wary of strangers.
The foyer was trimmed in warm wood tones with damask flourishes creeping up the wallpaper. Winter daylight kept the colors true, popping out the little details in the bronze curl of a cabinet handle and the fluted glass of an extinguished lamp. "Just ahead here..." She turned her shoulders to the next room though it was difficult to look away from the case in the the man's grip. A new home for her jar and bottle at last?
There was no need for lamps in the sitting room. Two floor to ceiling windows displayed all the splendor of winter in the gardens beyond, flooding the room with crisp white light. A waist high table stood in the very center of the room, seeming to serve no other purpose than to hold a small wooden chest. Though not not chipped or scarred the finish was well worn particularly on the bottom edges. "I suppose this is what you are here for." She placed her hand on the lid, her fingers curling slightly to feel the texture of the wood. Was it that long ago that she was delicately picking snails off it in Kyou's garden?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 12:13 pm
Zeke chuckled at the flub, not taking the words to mean that the woman before him couldn't handle the task she had been chosen for. A house this big certainly needed more than one pair of hands to keep it up and running. Zeke hadn't seen any hired help thus far but as far as he knew there were some here.
Anya couldn't help but peer at the two humans once their gaze was largely off her. The kindly words spoken to her were not missed and the spider queen took a look around as her Guardian had. This room alone was large and splendid in its decor. Again she likened it to the movies she had watched over the years that included such grand manses as set pieces. Despite the offer she was content for now to hang back and warm up, slipping off layers as she did so. Before the two would depart Anya would free her wings and give the long pinions a stretch before closing them and pressing both to her back.
"She's a bit on the quiet side," was the apology Zeke gave when Anya made no reply to the invitation. "The cold isn't her friend, like I said before, so she kind of keeps mum while she warms up." Plus she had grown leery around strangers and people in general since summer, but he kept that to himself. Zeke had been told that Wasa had been given her bottle by Dr. Kyou and he didn't want to worry her with the summary of that trip or the still-grim status of the doctor himself.
Before he was led into the other room Zeke made sure to turn to Anya and point out his location in case the femme wanted to follow rather than take up the invitation. To his words the Virus only nodded. Zeke offered her an encouraging smile in return.
When he entered the sitting room Zeke again had to look around and blink several times to transition over from the dimness of the other room to the shockingly bright light of this one. He looked out the nearest window, thinking that once spring came around this would be the room to be in once everything turned green and bloomed again. As Wasa stepped over to the chest on the table, Zeke followed and looked appropriately curious. When the woman patted the lid he had to crack a joke.
"I don't think this case is large enough to fit that." His smile reached his eyes as he hoisted the metal case up again and chuckled. "But I'll see what I can do when the time comes." His gaze went from the woman next to him to the box she stood by again. Zeke hadn't looked at the paperwork tucked away in the case so he didn't know the identity of Wasa's Essence. In exchange that made him doubley curious and excited about finding out what was inside. A mystery soul and a mystery Essence; this was quite the start to the new year!
"I'm excited to find out what you've caught, Wasa. I gotta admit, you're kind of a surprise - I didn't know we had another Guardian out there until I got the call today!"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jan 12, 2014 7:00 pm
"Surprises are always fun, aren't they?" She felt her skin warm with a soft flush of the cheeks. She was loathe to disappoint her guest, but the truth was she wasn't entirely sure what had taken hold of the bottle under the waves that day. Her fingers crept under the latch. "I like them, anyway. I get a lot of them." Hazard of being so unfocused. Things seemed to come out of nowhere far more often than they were expected. This whole adventure was a perfect example. It was ironic that the most planned part of the process to date had come to such a murky resolution.
In the foyer the occasional echo of overworked pipes tumbled out of the heater with the hissing hot air. Bangs and clangs became clinks and tinks traveling closer until it sounded like someone was drumming their nails on the copper just on the other side of the wall from the lonely Raevan. Then, suddenly, there was nothing but the gentle sound of the warm wind. The silence hung in the air, quiet as the winter beyond the windows.
"Are you a goddess?"
"Still not used to being called a Guardian." Wasa admitted as she opened the lid at last. She tended to avoid the term around Pasha and it wasn't something that really came up in the line at the super market. The jar and bottle were nestled inside, just as they were when she first opened the chest in front of Dr. Kyou with one notable difference. Wasa lifted up the jar first and handed it off to the visitor. "It's, uhm, well... best I can explain is that it's like, a spiral... " She traced a finger through the air in tighter and tighter circles. "It just keeps on going. It's a shell too, obviously, but mostly the spiral thing. Limitless fractal."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jan 19, 2014 9:58 am
"They are! I always love a surprise, even more so if they're good ones." A laugh bubbled up again and Zeke was smiles all around. The raver set the case down as Wasa opened the lid of the mystery box and he took two steps to clear the distance between himself and the chest. When passed the Essence he took a hold of it carefully as could be, peering at the shell halves that floated seemingly weightless inside. The mention of the Essence being a spiral that just keeps going had Zeke hoisting the jar up to his eye to investigate. Sure enough, there were fractals within fractals inside the now long gone animal's shell.
"This is so cool!" He lowered the jar to peer at Wasa, looking down only once when he heard the two shell halves clink together as he adjusted his hold on their temporary home. Going back to what she said about not being used to being called 'Guardian', he could relate. Long ago it had sounded foreign to him too. "You'll get used to the term, trust me. We were all where you are now before."
Zeke turned around and set the jar down on the nearest table. With the Essence now known to him, he was now doubly curious as to the identity of the soul to be paired with the Limitless Fractal. When trying to think of things that might go with the curious shells, he came up blank.
Anastacia flexed her fingers beneath the coats she carried, slowly drawing herself away from the heater as the room itself warmed up exponentially. She felt better now - at least, better than she had before. There was still an unease wrapped around her like a shawl, but with Zeke and the strange woman-now Guardian occupied in the adjacent room there was no denying that she was better for it. The Widow took in a slow, slightly shaky breath and exhaled. She was pleased to see it didn't come out in a white puff.
Turning her back to the spot she had just occupied, Anya turned her nearsighted gaze around the immediate area. Ever since the jungle her predilection for casing a room had intensified, but keeping herself from passing out had made that come second. Now that she was better, the cautious appraisal began. As befitting the outward appearance, the villa's main room was vast. In many places the blurry fog that the world became at a certain distance from her prevailed over what she could see. Anastacia remedied this by floating closer to certain objects, though unlike years past her curiosity was kept at a minimum. Strange places had strange secrets; even if the decor and style was something she found herself liking.
"Are you a goddess?"
As Anya drew close to a particular vase sitting off to the side from the rest of the knick knacks scattered about, she suddenly stopped and whirled around with her wings and crown expanding in alarm. The spider queen's lavender eyes ticked from place to place, looking for the source of a voice she was so certain she had heard just then. She found nothing to the naked eye, not when she was in the middle of the room and the surrounding walls were nothing but colored fog. A shudder ran through her, followed by a prickling sensation down her spine. She turned bodily to where she thought the voice had come from and started to back away toward the door that Zeke had gone through.
A goddess? No, she was no goddess. Goddesses didn't get scared by voices from nowhere. Hell, goddesses didn't ever hear voices from nowhere!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jan 19, 2014 3:20 pm
Wasa watched as the jar was placed on the table, not back in the box as it had been time and time again. She folded her fingers in front of the skirt as she felt her chest tighten as she tried to exhale through her nose without making a sound. This was what was happening. The essence and the soul were going away now and some time after there would be different Raevan at the door when a Lab employee came knocking... or was that when she went to the lab? The place was still quite a mystery to her and conjured up a scene of brushed metal tables and beakers. Not exactly the most welcoming birthplace, but then hospitals had that and more.
"And this is the soul." She picked up the bottle by the stem as to not obscure it from view as she lifted it up for the man to see. "I, um, well..." She tilted just slightly, watching the dark amber mist slide down the glass in a tumble of tendrils. "It's from the ocean..." The last bit of the statement curled up like a question, not because she was not confident about her answer but because she hoped it satisfied some requirement. "I suppose that doesn't mean it's from the ocean, but I'd say it's a really fair chance." She really hoped the body of some hapless scuba-diver wasn't trapped under the barnacle bedecked pilings of the pier. That would make for an awkward conversation somewhere along the road.
"I fished it up, you see." Wasa continued on, regaining some of her usual prattle now that she had been in the same room with someone for 5 minutes without causing them to back out the door. "I couldn't make the decision... Especially with the whole... you know." She chewed her lip, looking up from the bottle just in time to see Anya flick her wings dramatically but giving it no thought in the face of her own trials. She lowered her voice, not knowing if such subjects were sensitive to both Raevans and Guardians alike "... the death part. So I made a fishing pole. A special one." She drew lines in the air, drawing out a schematic that only she could envision. "Lines going here and here, and gears, something that could totally randomize where the bottle rested beneath the water." She hiccuped on her words, holding her fingers to her lips. "It was safe the whole time, I promise. I made lots of fail-safes"
--
In the foyer beyond, Anya's wordless reply was met with similarly non-vocal commentary. First, a rhythmic tapping like impatient finger nails on a tabletop followed by more scuttling along the copper pipes. That seemed like it, until a thud sounded below her like a paperweight rolling onto the carpet. Maybe it was her eyes, maybe her head, but there was nothing be seen despite how close it all sounded.
--
"Of course, this all means I don't know what found the bottle. There was nothing stuck to it when I brought it back up. Just the soul inside. There is this though..." She turned to let the light from the windows shine through the bottle to give Zeke a good view as she raised her finger and tapped just once on the glass. The resting mist swirled up from the bottom of the orb, color leaching out of the whisps until it was white as the snow beyond the window. "I don't know what that means...." She shrugged and then cupped both hands under the bell to hand it off to the visitor.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Jan 21, 2014 10:19 am
The soul caught the light as it was raised and Zeke had to suck in a little breath because of it. The strange orange-amber color that swirled in a tizzy within was a color unlike he had seen from any previous soul. In fact it was rather pretty. Turning his head to look back on the shells in the jar, it had to be thought that the pair would make a curious color combination. The soul was orange to a degree, the shells cream striped with brown. The only Raevan he knew with something similar would be Isobel, but the Chameleon had more rainbow to her than just straight orange. Perhaps the two would get along for dressing largely in cream, if the Raevan to be born took on that color primarily.
Turning back to look at Wasa once more, Zeke had to hum a single note as she explained about the origins of the soul, nodding in understanding at the part about death. Accompanying that sound was an interested and largely amused smile, especially as the woman pantomimed in the air. So this one was an inventor - very cool! "Well if it comes down to it, I can just write 'fish' with a question mark so we have something to consider when we put your two pieces together. In any case, I'm sure the mystery will be solved when he or she is born. Raevans take on many aspects of their souls in most cases." He gestured out the door where Anya had been, though now the spider queen was shying into the same room. Catching a glimpse of her face, to say the Widow had been 'spooked' would be an understatement.
"Anya, are you okay?"
The question made the Virus femme go straight as a ramrod, turning around in the air with all the grace and poise of a piece of machinery going through the motions. When she saw the two humans standing there she nodded just as mechanically, snapping her wings closed and then drawing them taut to her back.
"I'm fine." She moved from the door into the room itself, blinking much like Zeke had done. Unlike the vet however, the Widow raised her left hand to shield her brow from the light, making a soft hiss as the four eyes there had no ability to do as her lavender pair did.
"You sure? You look--"
"Yes." A muscle in her jaw ticked as she stressed the word, cutting her Guardian off before he could prattle on anymore. Although there were seats she could settle herself into, the Frei stayed aloft. Like the previous room, she flicked her gaze here and there to survey the new area, but now she made sure to scrutinize everything she could see extra hard.
Smiling gently at her - and keeping it in mind to ask her what happened when they were on their way home - Zeke turned so he had his peripheral vision on Anya while he continued on with Wasa. As she held out the bottle and showed him how the orange soul could suddenly blanch itself, Zeke's curiosity increased. Taking the Soul Glass gently in his hands, the raver flipped the bulbous bottom piece over so he held the conical top like an ice cream cone. Although stark white now the soul continued to move within its prison. He inclined his head to Wasa.
"I guess it means you've got a pretty animated soul on your hands!" His smile stretched and again he chuckled. Zeke flipped the bottle over so it was held properly in both hands, but unlike the Essence jar before it the vet didn't let this one go just yet. Soul Glasses were sturdy pieces of equipment, but he didn't want to give the woman before him a heart attack in case it decided to roll off whatever he placed it on.
"Let me think here..." Zeke trailed off to suck on his lip ring for a moment, deciding on how he wanted to proceed. He could pull the paperwork out and have that get out of the way, but there was no rush for that. "Since you've given me the jar and glass, I think we can move onto my favorite part of these meetings: Q and A!" His grin was luminous. "Since your Raevan will be born sometime in the coming year, I like to make sure Guardians are prepared for it. If you have any questions or concerns, I'm happy to answer anything and everything you wanna know!"
Zeke bounced on his heels as he spoke - it was clear he had been waiting for this just as much as he had been for everything up to this point.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jan 22, 2014 6:57 pm
Wasa watched the soul as it moved about. It reminded her of the desk amusements that fascinated her as a child. So many hours spent turning over sand in glass frames, tornadoes in a bottle, and pearl-dust paperweights. It was only her concern for antagonizing the soul within that kept her from idly putting it through its various states. Her toes curled in her shoes as she resisted taking it back from the man to show him what happened when you gave it a hard shake. It was the most beautiful shade of inky black, but she always got the worst feeling in the pit of her stomach when she did it.
"I suppose so! I mean, I've never seen a soul just, you know..." She patted her chest with both hands then gestured to the empty air around. "It's so neat to be able to see it! Amazing stuff..." She smiled, looking through the glass at the man. "There are lots of things in the sea. That's why I chose it. Fish, snails, urchins, corals, kelp, protazoa... I suppose the water itself." She clapped her hands together. "We'll find out soon!"
The next step made her smile weaken. She hated to disappoint the man who had been so kind and understanding, first by having only half of the answer to a mystery and now by not having much to ask. "Actually, I've known a Raevan since she was young. Maybe you know her? Pas- I mean, Melisande. Her guardian and I...." She twisted one finger in the pinched grip of her other hand. "We were quite close." She brightened up again. "Melisande has been helping me prepare, very helpful, shirts..." She drew a line just below her bust. "She even came fishing with me."
She chewed her lip gently. There had to be some question, something she had been too nervous to ask the muse. Something sensitive. Behind Zeke Anya grimaced and shielded her face, curtly shutting the man down. That was enough to twist the one question from her, the one thing she couldn't ask the Sigel. "What... what if it doesn't like me?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jan 23, 2014 2:01 pm
Zeke's grin was luminous.
"Yeah it's really cool! And hey, all life started in the sea so what better place?" Rotating the bulbous glass in his hands again, wondering anew just what this thing could be. What Wasa spoke of was true - it wasn't just fish that lived in the sea. There was literally a list over ten miles long for what this future Raevan could be. Narrowing it down to one thing would likely be damn near impossible, but he realized that perhaps he could make an attempt to shorten it to some degree. "Quick question Wasa, but when you were fishing were you on a dock, the shore, or out on a boat?"
Being a vet he knew a thing or two about fish. Not to the extent of any marine biologist worth their salt but Zeke had learned about ocean zones and how different sea creatures liked to live in select ones. Depending on where the woman before him was during her excursion, the search could be narrowed - or simply begin - with that area. Or so he hoped.
When Wasa explained about Melisande, Zeke's smile was polite but in the end he had to shake his head. Melisande sounded familiar somehow so perhaps she had been at one of the Lab's functions, but he had never met the Raevan Wasa was referring to personally. At any rate, it was good to know she had a guide through the process - even if it did sort of staunch the Q and A section of this meeting. He was hardly sore about it, though he was just as quickly thrown through a loop with the question Wasa finally blurted out.
"Doesn't...Like you?" The raver blinked as he spoke, clearly knocked off kilter by the unusual query. Opening his mouth again as though to speak, Zeke closed it again to think on how to best reply to this. His gaze focused on Anya, who was floating toward the windows at the back of the room with all the poise of a woman who was uneasy and overly concerned with her surroundings. He wasn't in her good books right now, certainly and with good reason, but as far as he knew she didn't dislike or even hate him deep down. Again the vet opened and immediately closed his mouth, turning to Wasa after a moment of watching his Frei and released a slow, short breath.
"I don't see why any Raevan would dislike you, Wasa. You seem like a nice person to me." The smile sparked back up again and reached his eyes. "But I would say as far as your newborn will go there will be some time needed for you two to get used to and get to know each other. Misunderstandings could happen or whatever, but if they happen, they happen. Not much to do about that except apologize and try to make up." He held the bottle with his right hand, reaching up to scratch at his goatee with his left. He didn't want to worry the woman or leave her with any doubts in her mind but this was a tricky question. The Raevan's personality would be a mystery until they were born, but as far as he knew no newborn had any negative feelings toward their guardians from the get go, clashing dispositions or not. "What your boy or girl will be like is a mystery until they're actually here. Like I said, I don't see why any Raevan would dislike you and that includes your own. If there are any problems, you can always call the Lab and have a counseling type deal set up for you."
Lab dealt with creating Raevans and keeping them healthy which meant that any mental and social problems would be touched upon along with the physical. More than likely any counseling would be done by Alex so Zeke made a mental note to mention this to her when he got back. Until then though, he could only smile with apology lining his pierced lips and lightly shrug. "Sorry, that's probably not the answer you're looking for, but let it be known that any problems you or your Raevan have can and will be handled by the Lab if you want the help. The involvement doesn't end once you get your Frei - the Lab's a family and this here," he patted the Soul Glass' bulb, "means you're now a part of it. We help our own."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jan 23, 2014 8:35 pm
The first promise of a spring came to Wasa's face as she smiled warmly at Zeke's sentiment. "Thank you. That makes me feel... much better." There were a few whispers of wondering in her mind, all having to do with things that were not here and now. Here and now was her Raevan and their future, and the future sounded like "... Family."
She rubbed her arms with a chill of excitement. Suddenly the floating girl circling the room seemed less a haughty queen and more a petulant teen. Her memories of Pasha as a young Frei marveling at the budding flowers in the spring garden were all that rosier. She nodded several times as she recalled every bit of the man's advice.
"I was at the pier, the farthest one out in the Port of Gambino. Closest I could be to the ocean and still be close to shore" She grinned "Every possibility I could imagine... I suppose the surprise won't quite measure up to meeting him or her for the first time." She nodded, feeling much more prepared to let the bottle go as the faint shadow of a being now hovered in her mind, replacing the feeling of a box in her hands.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Jan 24, 2014 10:31 am
It was a wonderful thing for Zeke to see Wasa light up at his reply. It was also a relief. The apologetic touch to his face drained out at seeing her smile and he had to chuckle in spite of himself, continuing to unconsciously pat the Soul Glass' bulb. "When I get the paperwork out for you to sign, I'm gonna be giving you a list of names, numbers, and addresses for all the Guardian and Raevan pairs who are apart of the Lab." He nodded toward the case sitting placidly on the floor. "That way you'll always have a line to someone in case you have any questions Melisande can't answer or just want to meet others."
With the case now in mind, Zeke crouched down to open it. He set the Soul Glass down gently on the floor, listening to what Wasa said about her fishing spot. "So not the shore but not open water either. Hmm..." He sucked his lip ring idly, shrugging once more after a few moments thought. "I guess we'll have to wait and see. There's plenty of orange things it could be, but do you have any guesses?" He pulled the case over and unsnapped the locks that kept the halves together. Behind him there was a rustle of movement from the spider queen, which had Zeke turning around to gesture to the case.
"Just the case." He spoke so cheerily, but his words were met with a look of unhappiness from her. "Sorry about that, Anya!"
With her surroundings now thoroughly inspected, Anya had taken to hovering off to the side. She was away from the chill of the windows, but had still slipped her pretty grey peacoat back on all the same. Although she was looking at the two of them now, by Zeke's words and the way she had quickly turned around, it was clear she had been looking out over the snowy garden up until that point.
"She startles easily," he said in a low tone of voice so the spider queen wouldn't overhear. In the large, rather quiet sitting room the double snap had been harsh on the ears. With them both now undone however, the case was now free to be opened. Zeke did just that, letting both halves lay flat on the floor. One side of the case was thick grey foam, the other the same but with two spaces cut out that would snugly fit the Soul Glass and the Essence jar. While Zeke could just put the Soul Glass in its proper place right then and there, the vet instead opted to pull the uncut foam out enough to pull out a cream-colored folder, a pen, and a thin packet of stapled papers. He passed the latter off to Wasa. The first page had four numbers highlighted in blue.
"This is the list of names and numbers I mentioned. The highlighted ones at the top are Lab staff members." Picking up the pen and folder in one hand and the filled bottle in the other, Zeke stood up. "The folder is just the legal stuff as well as a small section to prove that yes, you were the one to turn this back over to us." Zeke moved toward the box from whence the soul and Essence had come from and set the folder and pen down on it. Wasa could look through and sign at her leisure. "Once you sign those on the lines, your two will have been officially returned to the Lab. From then on out, it'll just be a waiting game until your boy or girl is born!"
How long the Frei would take to grow and be born would be a mystery all in itself, but with a wondering on what the soul was, Zeke hoped it wouldn't take too long.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
