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 Posted: Wed Nov 09, 2022 7:50 am
At first Jet thought about asking Faustite to meet him in his office. Jet was comfortable in his office, surrounded by familiar things, or new things that Aquamarine had obtained for decoration. He knew where ever pen was, every imperfection in his new desk, the sound of the door as it opened on hinges that should probably be oiled.
He liked his office. He didn’t think he would at first. But then Laurelite said she had no problem with him having a keyboard there. Maybe she knew that the more comfortable he was in his office, the less likely he would want to go home when he could just practice or write music there.
There were a lot of reports to read up on, too. Things he never knew about the Negaverse, or the people in it. Or those who used to be in it. If anything, it only made his dedication stronger. They had a lot to do, and they might be running out of time to do it.
Which was why it was important for their best people to be at the top of their game.
“Can I talk to you?” Jet asked through the closed door after lifting a hand to knock on it. He knew Faustite was inside. Even without the auras being a little clearer than before, he would have smelled the fire.
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Posted: Wed Nov 16, 2022 3:59 pm
The office was quiet for once — no resident himbo to fill the space with his endless, booming words. No squabbles to field, no plans were being sewn. The twice-broken desk stood as precariously as it always had, with a pristine glass top to match the glass-faced bookcases behind the desk. Above them was the plaque where Albite mounted his prize from their Rift mission. Around the walls were knickknacks and trophies from his team members: Alkmene's framed song, the jacket Celadonite made him hung on a crystal that jutted from the wall, some leftover Christmas ornaments from Lysithea had found their way into a nest that Haymitch assembled out of trash and sweaters in the corner. The writing desk in the corner now featured a few books, each uncertain prospects that might be in Jada's tastes. Of course, anything that Tama added to the space had populated the metal wastebasket next to his desk.
When Jet approached the door, the burning boy was already inside. He sat at his desk, both arms folded atop it, with his head nestled into the narrow, bony makeshift pillow. He drew soft, raspy breaths as thin rivulets of smoke left his nose as mouth, curling lazily up toward the ceiling. When Jet knocked, he had been in the midst of a dream.
Faustite roused, feeling bleary and cobwebbed with sleep. A voice spoke, and it took him a beat to recognize it, then recognize the aura precipitating around it. His first thoughts thereafter were a string of expletives as he felt his grogginess fall away into adrenaline.
"Enter," he managed after he unstuck his tongue. Hastily, he carded his fingers through his hair in case it arranged itself into a tousled mess while he was napping. Then he straightened his vest, tossed his cape behind his back, folded his hands in front of himself and waited. Then he unfolded his hands and laced them instead. Then, pursing his lips, he gave up and sat on them.
"What is it, Jet?" Catching himself, he groaned at the slip. "General-King," he amended.
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2022 10:01 am
It had been a while since Jet had approached Faustite in his office. These days if Faustite needed him, it was the other way around. Or a request for an appearance in the Rift. Things had changed a lot since the last time Jet had crossed through that door, but there were things that remained the same.
Despite their occasional lack of understanding of each other, Jet still wanted to make sure Faustite was well equipped to handle whatever the White Moon, or Dark Mirror Court, or anything had to throw at him.
“General,” Jet answered the greeting with a nod, and glanced around the room at the various decorations. It seemed as though settling into an office was a common goal these days, what with Aquamarine decorating his office.
“Came to see how you were doing, and also give you what I’d been working on,” he explained, as he pulled a small, black wooden box from his subspace pocket.
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2022 10:37 am
Faustite groaned, half from sleep, half from the use of his title. It was its own reminder to sit up straight, shoulders back, speak only when spoken to, stay in line. And he tried to manage the posture part after he rubbed some of the sleep from his eyes, but sitting up straight was ever an uncomfortable thing when he was fire inside. He tried to wrest himself free of his grogginess, and unstick his tongue well enough that it may speak words without stumbling.
"Fine," he answered. And perhaps fine wasn't the correct word, but no other word seemed to fit, either. "Didn't want to sleep at home." There were boys there, and boys had starseeds. On the nights that he felt his vice eat into his willpower, he found that avoidance granted him more peace of mind. Couldn't starseed someone he couldn't reach. Here in the office, he found little reason to worry about that — especially when his guest was one of the Sovereigns.
Faustite blinked at the box that appeared in Jet's hand. He recalled the conversation, if dully: something about a means to help him control himself. If Jet figured something out, then Faustite welcomed the additional solace it would provide.
He assumed Jet would seat himself if he wanted to stay logn enough to have a talk. While the boy approached the desk, Faustite rooted around in the bottom drawer to locate his kettle and the pitcher of spring water. After filling the kettle, he hoisted it up into his lap and cradled it against the metal and fire of his midsection. "Tea?" Flame eyes sought the curly-haired Sovereign inquisitively.
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Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2022 4:46 pm
Jet nodded in vague understanding. He’d never had to worry about killing his spouse due to starseed cravings, but he also knew what it was like to want to just keep working or keep occupied and not return to a place that only brought misery and heartbreak. Things had changed over the years, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t remember a time where he dreaded having to go to the group home and his shared room.
He watched Faustite as he pulled out some water and a kettle, although he had to peer over the desk a little to see what Faustite was doing.
His eyebrows furrowed a little. Not out of disgust, but more out of mild concern and bewilderment.
“Sure, I’ll have some tea, thanks,” he said as he moved to sit down on one of the chairs, the box in one hand still.
“Why do you treat yourself like that?” he asked, nodding to the way Faustite was using his body to heat the kettle. “I get using your resources, but you don’t have to. No one is going to stop you from feeling or acting human, if that’s what you want.”
Unless Faustite finally accepted that he was more youma than human.
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Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2022 10:03 am
The metal chairs were upholstered with a treated plastic with high heat tolerance, allowing them some cushion, though they were unfriendly to bare skin. Likewise, they grew terribly cold in the absence of the office's owner, who often kept the room quite warm on his own. Still, the chairs were sturdy, and they saw a number of tussles and squabbles that would have destroyed the wooden ones that were originally issued with the office.
As Jet sat, Faustite's attention followed the box in his hand. He thought to ask about it, but decided that Jet would broach the subject when he thought it appropriate.
The question he asked left Faustite staring dumbly at him for a long moment. It wasn't until after Jet elaborated that Faustite understood to what he was referring, and consternation resolved into clarity. "Oh. I…" Faustite chewed his lip as he looked down at the kettle in his lap. It was strange; no one commented about it to him before. Perhaps the rest of his team was being polite about it being odd? Or perhaps they were too afraid of saying anything, owing to Faustite's volatility at times.
"General had me do it. Got used to it, I guess. More convenient than going down to the kitchen in the Barracks and using a stove." He paused, considered his next question, then ventured it forth: "Is it weird?"
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Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2022 11:58 am
“There are weirder things.” The comment wasn’t noncommittal so much as it was just observing that there were weirder things. He didn’t particularly care if Faustite wanted to use his fire to heat his water, but knowing that his old General had him do it was somewhat concerning. That was what he cared more about. And he’d seen it time and time again that Faustite put himself down and acted out, all thanks to his history that he seemed stuck in a cycle, unable to break.
“If it’s something you want to do -- use your resources and all that, or if it’s just habit, then go for it. As long as you don’t consider it demeaning -- as long as it doesn’t bring bad memories or thoughts, then you can do what you want,” Jet said as he tried to make himself comfortable on the plastic seats. He took a moment to inspect the one next to him, but there was no change in his expression beyond his genuine concern about Faustite.
“We could get you an electric kettle to use, if you want one,” he suggested as he looked around the room. “We could have your whole office outfitted with a fire suppressant system. It would protect your things as much as it would the rest of the castle.”
Ah, but he was getting off topic, and shook his head as though to refocus himself.
“If you need anything that would make your life easier, you just have to ask. A home theater is probably not going to be approved, but an electric kettle or two so your team or guests can make their own tea, or even tea for you is completely reasonable. You’re not bound to whatever your Generals wanted from you any more, Faustite.” Because he knew there had been more than just one to wreck havoc on Faustite’s self esteem.
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Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2022 2:37 pm
Good, the Queen wasn't liable to come marching down to his office, asking about Tama, and give him a scathing look by boiling water with his… self. In truth, he thought little of it or its connotations. It was simply what was done; his prior General valued efficiency over all else and impressed that upon him for forming his habits.
Now that it was brought to mind as something possibly problematic, he would have to think on it. If it caught Jet's attention, then perhaps an electric kettle was a better investment. Certainly it would be easier on the days that he felt exhausted to rely on electricity for his needs. And if visitors preferred not seeing him put himself to use like that, he had every reason to take Jet up on the offer. A fire suppressant system, though — Faustite wondered if that wouldn't end him, or be a redux of his brush with Sessrumnir.
"Electric kettle," he agreed with a nod. "Dislike being reminded of her."
The kettle in his arms had begun to whistle as Jet continued explaining. Faustite listened in silence while he pulled a pair of cups from the middle drawer — one a childish gift from one of the boys that said "boss babe vibes" in gold over a hot pink background, and the other an orphaned handmade piece of a hummingbird handle dipping into a flower on the side of the cup. Each was then filled with hot water and Faustite produced metal tea strainers to settle over the top, and added measured packets of a roasted chestnut black tea to each. He sat afterward, then turned the metal dial on a timer in the middle drawer.
Lacing his hands together, Faustite tucked his knuckles under his chin. Few others had taken an interest in his welfare or the way he used his own body. He'd done so frequently during previous missions, but it all went unsaid.
He glanced down before he forced himself to meet Jet's gaze. "When I was in the Rift," he started, and he considered specifying which times, but ultimately it didn't matter. "I had to survive any way possible. Did things that… were probably demeaning. Point is, I lost my sense for what's degrading and what isn't. Appreciate you saying something.
"Assume you dropped by for that, right?" He asked, and nodded toward the box in Jet's hand.
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Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2022 1:48 pm
Jet nodded -- in response to everything Faustite said. About the kettle, about the box, and about saying something. It was easy to get used to people doing things, and Jet hoped that was all it was when it came to the possibility of others not saying something to Faustite before. Or maybe they had and it just needed to be said by someone who was seen as an outsider.
“It takes a while to come back from something like that,” Jet nodded in agreement, and although he kept Faustite’s gaze, he was careful about revealing too many emotions. “What you do to survive… that’s the most important thing. Not everyone will understand it, but you’re still here and there are others who are not.”
He glanced down at the box then, a grin pulling at his lips. “Straight to business? I thought we were going to enjoy some tea together. Very well,” he conceded and held the box out for Faustite to take.
The wooden box had clearly been made with heat in mind. Maybe for Faustite to use for storage once he was done with what was inside.
When opened, the box revealed a black stone bracelet, embedded with crystals.
“If you didn’t already know, the Queen is very knowledgeable about crystals,” Jet explained as he shifted forward to rest his arms on the edge of Faustite’s desk so he could look at the bracelet easier.
“Had that gauntlet thing for Lyndin made to let him remove starseeds. Figured there should be a way to make the opposite of that. Finding the stone took the longest, though. Wanted to make sure it was completely fire and melt proof. Think of it as… kind of a nicotine patch,” he continued. “It’s not going to fix everything, but it should make things easier, I hope. You shouldn’t be able to touch starseeds while wearing it.” Quote: Tempering Bracelet (Negaverse only) - A black stone bracelet, embedded with crystals When worn, it prevents the wearer from being able to interact with starseeds; they cannot pull them, cannot hold them, cannot consume them. Those who wear it must choose to wear it. It may lessen the effect of starseed addiction and ease the wearer out of it over time, but only if the wearer is not actively manipulating Chaos (such as by draining energy, or doing promotions/awakenings, etc). Channeling Chaos through the wearer lessens the relief of starseed addiction it provides. This item will be available through IC need and plot approval.
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Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2022 8:05 am
A thin smile escaped him at the thought — no, not everyone understood survival tactics. He knew he took a few of those with him from the Rift, and they were actions his husband was kind enough to accept about him. Or he thought they were prudent, himself, though Faustite doubted Albite knew what prudent meant, let alone how to stop being so overwhelming about anything. It was in his nature, after all.
To Jet's comment, Faustite offered a perfunctory shrug. "Tea's better without business hanging over us." More enjoyable without tasks looming, he always thought.
His attention reached the box, then the bracelet inside as Jet revealed it. Strange to find a bracelet in it.
He'd worked with crystals before, but only as a power source. It came as no surprise that Laurelite was far more an expert on them, and likewise no surpise that he had been working with the Queen on his project. She was the last mentor in terms of rank for him, not that he ever had much of one, and she would necessarily be the consult for projects like these. Faustite assumed, then, that the crystals weren't present for energy purposes. However they could be modified, she or Jet must have tuned them to some other task.
After a beat, Faustite nodded, unsure of what to say. He took up the bracelet, gave it a closer look as it tented over his fingers, then slipped it onto a thin wrist. His shirt sleeve obscured it almost immediately, and Faustite assumed there would be little to do about that. Probably for the best, too, that he wouldn't be as easily digging under his shirt cuffs to wrench the bracelet off in his sleep.
The tea timer went off, and Faustite startled, though he took up the opportunity to busy himself. The strainers were removed for the cups, then dumped out in the waste bin by his desk. A pair of Mini Moo's half and half cups were obtained from the middle drawer, along with some honey sticks and stir sticks. He left one of each for Jet to decide how he wanted his tea, and used half the stick of honey and the cup for his. Stirring gave him something to do while he ordered his thoughts.
"Thanks," he said first, as he had long learned that it needed to be said. "It's a thoughtful, needful tool." It was peace of mind for keeping his boys — his team — alive. And he wasn't going to try it out with Jet in his office.
No, he wasn't going to feel up Jet's chest to see if it works. He reminded himself, sternly, to stop thinking about it.
"Been meaning to ask," he started as he picked up his tea mug. "How's it being a Sovereign? Seems like there's some freedom to do projects like this," he added, glancing to his wrist.
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Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2022 9:06 am
Jet didn’t mind Faustite busying himself. He leaned back to give him some more room once the bracelet was on his wrist, and when it was offered, he took the second cup with a quiet thanks, along with a honey stir stick and half and half cup for his own tea. He was clearly not a tea connoisseur, but he tried to not do anything that might offend Faustite.
“Busy,” Jet admitted to Faustite’s question about being a Sovereign. “There’s a lot I still need to learn that we didn’t have access to as Generals. Been working on projects, yes. Some are taking longer than others, but hopefully it’ll make things better for everyone in the long run,” he explained before carefully taking a sip of his tea.
“That being said… If you have ideas for projects and need access to more resources. Things are more available than you’d think.”
He always kept his head down as a General. Didn’t want to waste anyone’s time or energy if he could help it. It was his own fault for not trying to do bigger projects, and now that he realized how silly he’d been about it, he wanted to make sure others were supported if they needed anything. Or wanted anything.
“But it’s also a great honor,” he said after a moment. He sounded earnest, and not like it was an afterthought in the least. Maybe it was for the sake of his own modesty.
“I’d promoted others with the help of General King Axinite and the Queen before, but it’s a lot different doing it yourself. A stronger connection. It's humbling,” he admitted. Or it was humbling for him at least. He could see why it was assumed power would go to someone's head, and why it had with others in the past.
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Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2022 6:41 am
'Busy' was an expected answer, as was the lack of transparency on the projects. The Sovereigns were not beholden to the Generals for status updates, only to the Queen — and the Negaverse had suffered enough turncoats that more secrecy for the projects in the highest echelons of the organization was welcome, even expected. While he felt curious, he was likewise glad to be left out of the loop. He'd already experienced the pains of secret-keeping with the brothers, and those hurts were slow to fade.
"Mm." The fiery boy nodded. "Always have a few things on my mind. Need some free time to develop them." And seek out others in the case of the ones that regrettably involved technology. Doing so would require restructuring his days, however, and sacrificing some of his free time for said projects.
Where Jet sipped, Faustite drank. Tea was always lukewarm to him, so he had little need of avoiding burning himself (and, truthfully, he was always burning himself). At Jet's next words, Faustite shifted and recrossed his legs under the desk. One foot took up bobbing with the energy that he wasn't spending on pacing at the moment.
"Can't imagine that." Faustite hadn't had a lot of experience with promotions — primarily, he watched them as a witness or as the General to the officer being promoted. He had only heard that Jet and Axinite were involved in promoting Albite — the boy had gloated about it for an age once Faustite had stopped chewing him out for promoting without telling him — so Faustite had never witnessed it himself to read Jet's face in the process. Faustite found it adorable, though, that Jet was so invested in promotions.
Likewise, he understood that he shouldn't nurse a crush on someone who was adjacent to his boss. He sighed wistfully.
"Good that you're doing well with it. Seems like a lot of work. Lot of management, task delegation, redirection." He didn't envy it. Especially the idea of handling disputes between officers, if it ever came to Sovereign involvement.
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Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2022 6:38 pm
“This wasn’t ever something I expected for myself,” he admitted, taking a moment to stir his tea and let it cool a little more so he didn’t burn his mouth if he drank more than a sip at a time. “But I’ll do whatever’s required of me. Even if it means a lot of paperwork and task delegation and whatnot.”
Although he couldn’t say that those were his favorite tasks.
“If you need help with any of your projects, or need to figure out getting more free time for things, just let me know. I can help… you know… delegate tasks,” he said with a small grin. He then nodded to the bracelet.
“You’ll have to let me know how it works for you. I’ve tested it myself on Cymophane. But obviously I’m not part youma, so there could be some variables we didn’t know to take into consideration. It should work, but… Just let me know.”
If anything, maybe it would work as a good placebo. But Jet had confidence that it would be useful.
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Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2022 7:00 pm
"Better you than me," he decided with a nod. He'd rather be free of most paperwork and retain his mobility to be out in the field. Faustite lacked the temperament for desk work, as well as the humanity; he'd likely send up enough singed reports that he would either be demoted or relieved from that duty. But that was only a simple comparison — evaluated on his own, Faustite thought Jet was a fine choice. Likewise, he couldn't imagine himself in that position.
"Mm. Need to navigate… this first," he explained, gesturing to all of himself. Before he could sort out projects and make progress with his new leads, he had to be certain that starseeds wouldn't cloud his judgment. For that, Jet's latest project would prove immeasurably useful.
With it, he hoped, he could return home to finish sleeping. He missed napping in the arms of his boys.
He gestured to Jet his agreement to keep the Sovereign informed. "Only possible issue is when I turn into fire. Might come off." But he didn't expect anything else; the rest of his youmabilities had no interplay with starseeding. They were all made with the same stock abilities with the same brand of chaos, so he had little reason to think the bracelet would backfire on him — especially if Jet had the pain in the a** of finding a stone that wouldn't melt by touching his skin.
"Appreciate this, you know." It was a genuine sentiment, even when spoken around a yawn.
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Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2022 9:35 am
Jet snorted softly in amusement, but no matter what happened, he would do what was best for the Negaverse. If that meant staying out of sight and being used as an ace in a tide turning battle, then he was content to not let anyone in the White Moon know anything about what he was now capable of doing.
“That’s going to be something you’ll have to decide for yourself,” Jet nodded at the bracelet when Faustite mentioned a possible problem with it coming off when he turned into fire. “You’ll have to decide what is more important when that time comes. Using your abilities and risking the compulsion, or coming up with another solution to prevent it from falling off.”
Faustite knew what would happen if Jet found out he was killing agents by taking their starseeds. Jet had already made that promise to him in the Rift. If Faustite wanted to pick his youma abilities over the safety of their agents, then that was a consequence he would have to live with. But not for long.
As much as Jet wanted to help Faustite, he couldn’t risk the lives of countless other agents because Faustite couldn’t keep himself under control. Banishment to the Rift may be a possibility, but at that point, Jet thought death would be more merciful.
“Let me know if there’s anything else I can help with. You’re important to a lot of people, myself included. I want to see you overcome this, so let us help by giving you the tools you need. The thing about survival…? It’s easier when you’re not alone.”
Jet knew that first hand. Had Aquamarine not left everything he had to find and take care of him after being kidnapped with the others, Jet wasn’t sure where he would be.
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