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Tamiya x Larque

What: Larque apologizes for breaking into Tamiya's hive.
When: Early evening

Echoes of a hesitant knock filtered through the hive. A set of white ears perked up at the sound, and shortly Kabukidad whisked into the hallway where his charge’s respiteblock was. But, she was already awake. Tamiya greeted him at the door with an anxious twitch of her lip, one hand resting on the frame.

She looked pristine and put together, but since the previous incident at her hive every knock and creaking of the old building made her start. Tamiya had even hid from the deliverytroll, and the thump of the bright and brave Paperboy’s morning newspaper (she allowed herself a moment of silence for the service of such day-walking trolls). At least it was a knock at the appropriate door. The front door. She exhaled. Kabukidad was sure to smell her fear, but she would be a disappointment if she didn’t at least put on a brave façade.

Stepping out into the hallway and smoothing the pleats on her hakama, Tamiya shook off her nerves. She made her way to the front double-doors with Kabukidad trailing in her shadow, and put her fingers gingerly on the huge antique handle.

She froze with the door half-way open. It was the greenblood. An expression of shock (heightened by her theatrical make-up) shot across her face before she opened the door fully, the events of their previous encounter washing over her suddenly. Here he was. The troll she had sanctified. She was suddenly acutely aware of the dull pressing of a whistle against her neck. Her bound-spirit-mate. Her ritual was an utter success. She would have glowed if she knew how (and if glowing was not a horrid side-effect of a supernatural breed of undead monstrosities).

“I knew that I would see you again,” She chirped. Her attention turned to the enormous insect at a protective distance from its charge. So he’d made it back safely. Lovely.

Tamiya, stunned, looked down at the floppy scalebeast presented to her. An offering to sate the balance of his misdeeds was… Shockingly appropriate. Kabukidad rattled out a soft purr and Tamiya stepped forward, raising both of her palms.

She was speechless for a moment, and cleared the knot from her throat to take the gift. She inspected it thoroughly. Speared with vicious care, it appeared to be sound in her arms. She tentatively lowered her neck to sniff at the beast before giving a sharp nod. The debt was paid. “Yes. This is an acceptable bounty,” she chirped.

Tamiya then turned on the corner of her bare heel smartly, facing her lusus. He stood on his four legs, and so she gave him a pat on the head with an arm while supporting the scalebeast in the other. Tamiya then slid the fish on top of both of her lusii’s mitt feet. With curious grace, Kabukidad lifted his hind legs to carry the fish into the darkness of the hive, walking on his curious forearms in a ghastly stagger. The purpleblood turned back around as mechanically as she had swiveled away.

“Come in for tea,” she barked. “Remove your footwear. Your lusus may join us.”

Tamiya immediately shuffled inside and gestured to a rack next to her door. She then gestured into the small hallway behind the main stage. “It is the first door on the left. I will make preparations for both of you.”

Tamiya scuttled into her nutritionblock as the others made their way into the black box. The black box was incredibly spacious – eerily so. It seemed like a place for a performance of some kind, with terraced rows of what could have been benches and lines of masks on the wall. They hung from thin bars that made up the rafters of the room, some with coarse, long hair draping down from above. It was easy to imagine the fox-like lusus padding across the metallic pipes, rustling the heads that looked upon those below. In the middle of the room was the stage area – an impressive mat covered the majority of it, though one could feel hollow spots here and there where trapdoors lay hidden underneath. On the center of the mat was a simple tray.

Tamiya, meanwhile, made herself busy with a piping hot kettle of a sweet nectar tea. It was a recipe passed down by her lusus and augmented by the teachings of the Great Ones themselves – however, for this rather rustic guest she diluted the Gatorade with an ample amount of fresh springwater and honey. It would be better for his digestion this way.

The purpleblood carefully arranged the tea. She did not trust her soulbound-mate to be correct in his interpretation of her particular brand of juggalo tea ceremony, and for this reason only (a rare occasion for sure) she made up for the loss with a quick ritual.

The sound of the wailing and pot clanging could be heard from the black box. The masks shuddered, and a particularly woeful beak-nosed mask twisted towards the greenblood. After a brief period of silence, there was another. The clanging grew less frequent, though the wailing increased in rapidity and force. Finally, nothing. With the shuffling of feet, Tamiya entered shortly thereafter. She held aloft her tray, with tea for herself and her guests. She looked up at the enormous mantis.

“I have procured a larger cup if your ability is inhibited,” she chimed. “Or if this is a ******** inconvenience. I have a number of drinktubes,” Like any self-respecting clown, Tamiya had many heirlooms of the drinktube variety – from drinktube hats to drinktubes of unusual size and shape. The whole situation was very surreal. Tamiya sat down due South and looked at Larque expectantly. She took a sip of her tea without breaking eye contact.

Tamiya settled down herself and shot a series of thoughtful glances heavenward. This was a blessed day, to be sure. Larque seemed hesitant, and reasonably so. But he needn't worry. She'd already carried out everything to assure his safety, after all.

"Everything was ******** peachy," Tamiya stated dryly. She clicked a finger against the ceramic of her cup and stared at Larque. "I was performing a ritual to guarantee that our meeting would remain in balance. You are fortuitously absolved from such duties, and being my soul-bound mate I feel as though this is an appropriate step in our relationship,"

She was brimming with kindness. Tamiya sucked down the last of her tea and laced her fingers around the handle of the hot kettle between them. She lifted it clean off the floor with mechanical grace and only after it rested back against the mat again did she regain eye contact with him. She cleared her throat. It was time to socialize.

"My name is Tamiya Aiguma. What title has your lusus bestowed upon you that I may use to address you -- ahem -- what is your goddamn name?"

There was a hitch of discomfort within the little purpleblooded girl. If this individual wasn't a textbook show of her aptitude at creating a link between the living, she would be rather lost. Her eyes darted briefly to see if Kabukidad was in the room, to guide her. His presence was palpable, but expectant. This was all on Tamiya. carrying out successful social interactions was not her strong suit.

"And... Why have you come here, if not just for seeking atonement?" Perfect save -- perhaps Tamiya could make a conversationalist out of herself yet. Her tone was rather commanding, but the purpleblood was oblivious to any implication of hostility. Her idea of an inviting space was akin to an interrogation room.

Tamiya sputtered. She held the cup to her lips at an angle, still and shocked. Larque -- his name was Larque -- an inoffensive name -- was raving. He was confused, of course, as Tamiya could have predicted. But to disgrace her offer of being mates was... Foolish. She nearly ratcheted from her position in a barely concealed fit of rage and despair, all the while hiding her grimace behind her tea. This required some thought. Heat rose in Tamiya's face. To downplay or even scorn her ritual with this naivety was too much.

She watched him as he swallowed the tea. From above, the masks creaked in quiet chorus, and the sounds of Larque's insectoid lusus were almost grating in the silence. Tamiya closed her eyes and swallowed a mouthful of tea, letting it run down her throat to cleanse the fire of her thoughts. Remember what father said. Others do not know how we live, and they fear us. This is good.

And it was good. It should have been. Tamiya cracked open her narrow eyes and set her cup down. She was looking directly at Larque, and he was mentioning the charm. The whistle. She clutched it. He was asking a lot of questions. She tried to recall the events of his brief abduction - it was stamped into the forefront of her mind. She did everything right! He should feel grateful, yes? These details shouldn't matter - couldn't he see? His nervous energy was putting her on the edge. Her pumpbiscuit beat fast (perhaps from the tea), and she struggled not to snap. He had no idea. This was fine, this was fine, this was <********> fine.

Wait a goddamn moment, nooksucker, this was ******** fine as hell.

Larque could not know the dangers of the supernatural -- how could he? He was a powerless, hapless midblood after all. He needed protection, not scorn, from the powers that be, and the Messiahs granted him quite a blessing that night. That blessing was Tamiya. He just didn't know it yet. One of the sides of Tamiya's mouth curled up and the other followed like a dry leaf. Her teeth were long and blunt. Unsettling. Up above, Kabukidad batted at a mask.

"Larque," began Tamiya. Her tone was flat -- friendly? "Our first meeting was ******** fateful. By crossing the threshold into my home in such a flat-out shitnasty dangerous manner, you guaranteed torment from every grubbing spirit in this building. I took it upon my goddamn-self to free you from that awful shitsack bucketslush, and by taking this charm I have secured your b***h-a** under my spiritual care. Killing you would be a disservice to your lusus and to the volatile loadgaping spiritual energies that Hemisect is already ******** inundated with." She placed a hand flat in his direction and looked him in the eye. "That is what the hell that was."

Tamiya expected thankfulness, but she would also expect reverence or fear.

So he understood. He could learn. Good! Tamiya nodded deeply over her tea before refilling her cup and draining it again.

“Yes. All three of your inquiries,” Tamiya curtly explained. She filled her cup once more, set it down, and extended her palm to Larque.

She flicked her fingers to establish that she wanted his cup, and took it from him to refill. The tea was getting to the bottom of the pot – the more solidified sugary substance oozed into the receptacle. Tamiya offered a refill to the lusus as well, and finally settled again. This was perhaps the most fun playdate she had ever had. Not that she’d ever had a real playdate, mind you, but this was perhaps the next best thing. He came here of his own volition after all.

Tamiya felt the need to elaborate, however. For Larque’s sake. She touched the whistle with her slender fingers and peered up at him. “This whistle connects us now. Like your lusus protects you, as a troll and a defender of the way of the goddamn heart and the boons and dangers of mirth I am here for you from now on.”

She cleared her throat at the happy thought and immediately wondered when she could set up another meeting time for the two. Kabukidad would most likely tell her to be patient and wait for the fated time to meet with him, but perhaps she could find a fabulous holy date and pencil him in for a specific time when all of the conditions were right. A little half-moonlight, some incense… Perhaps he could show her and Kabukidad around… Wherever he was from in Old Hemisect. She didn’t get much of a chance to explore, what with the dangers of the spirits, but with her soulbound-mate with her she felt more confident to explore.

“That’s why I will be keeping it. Consider it a toll for the passage of your spirit into paradise.” End of story.

Tamiya swelled with pride. Another test that she would pass. Everything Kabukidad told her would come into play in swaying this average troll.

“I cannnot imagine that your lusus would know. I have spent ******** sweeps learning from my own lusus about this. It takes a trained eye and beautiful damn spirit.”

She lowered her hands to gesture to her core. Tamiya’s gaze flitted back to Larque. “A place of togetherness and balance for all trolls. Paradise.” Kabukidad landed with a soft thud behind the purpleblood and laid down next to her on his stomach.

“There is a lifeforce on Alternia. A strand of equilibrium that holds our world in place. Without chaos, there cannot be order. Mirth – shed by our great messiahs as messages of capriciousness and glee – empower us to uplift the universe with the weight of our laughter. And with great mirth comes suffering. A penalty for all trolls seeking to harm the natural way of the world.”

There was a brief pause. Tamiya waited for Larque to give her a sign of acknowledgement before she continued. Her tone in speaking was practiced and rote, as though she had memorized the information over sweeps of lessons. She was convinced but otherwise unpracticed – and at the same time, she was passionate. Her gesticulations were sharp and definite.

“The spirits that my father speaks of are all around us, but are not tangible by those of… Our blood. They are vile representations of a dearth of pacification in the land. There are many reasons for spirits to remain on this most mirthless plane. An untimely demise is sure to cause turmoil, considering that there was no time for preparation. Vengeance is a reason for resistant spirits. They manifest in misfortune and pain indiscriminately. Fortunately, my hive is a sanctuary. I have made sure of it. I know that there are spirits. My lusus tells me so. And I can feel them.”

There would be no arguing with Tamiya on that point. She immediately broke into her next monologue with little hesitation.

“Larque. You cannot deny something at work, having fallen into my care. I have yet to see if this was due to great fortune or not, but I feel the need to keep you safe.”

For the sake of her own skin, Tamiya thought. She could feel Kabukidad’s gaze upon her from his general direction. If Larque turned out to be a pox, she would never recover in his eyes. If he was truly a bad omen, she would have to distance herself from him or face the consequences. The only other option was death.

“Not all of my caste are of my faith. Not all of my faith are of my caste. But there is a certain pull to my stature and place in this society, as the messiahs intended. I aim to seek out those who harm us as a race – whether corporeal or not. Lowbloods are naturally akin to instability with their psychic channels, and those that can see spirits are in as much danger as those of higher caste who do not believe. You would be foolish to put your guard down – living in Old Hemisect should have taught you that, however, and I will not repeat those details for the sake of repetition.”

Tamiya sighed and looked over to her father, but suddenly remembered something. “********! s**t, grubslag truckguzzle.” Embarrassed, she bowed her head briefly before he was satisfied. Her speech was not nearly appropriate enough.

“It is a whole shitload to take in, I know,” she said with as much formal respect as she could muster. Tamiya got up to take the now empty dishes away, head buzzing with thought.