The Fireflies (6) : In the warm summer nights, little glowing lights begin to bob and dart through the city. Fireflies are mating, so this isn't uncommon in itself; in the past few days you've probably seen hundreds of fireflies. What makes these lights so unique is that they seem to change color; you might see a blue one, a green one, a red one. They flicker randomly, and something just seems off with them. If you come into contact with one, you will find yourself with a strange electric jolt. They cannot be caught, and will flicker away if you pursue too aggressively. This isn’t the first time they’ve appeared in Destiny City, but no one’s been able to tell where they came from or where they’re going. No matter how quickly you chase them, they always seem to disappear before you can find any answers.
It was definitely a very hot, very sticky night, and Sonora wasn't sure she was fond of it. She wasn't normally too bothered by temperatures, but the humidity--that was what really got you. And it was only the beginning of July! How miserable and swampy would August be?
Ugh.
But she had to be out. She was a Knight of Ida, and it was her duty to protect people. And tonight, that meant wandering the park, keeping an eye on the strange rainbow fireflies. She'd brushed up against one, by accident, and been surprised by the angry little jolt it gave her--and since, she'd kept her eyes out, making sure not to get too close to one. Her cosmic companion had appeared, briefly, right after she got shocked--and she could have sworn the poor thing was concerned about the shock she'd received, but she'd patted the little glowing orb gently and it had vanished, seemingly contented.
She snapped her fan open, and fluttered it as she walked, glad that she had a weapon designed to beat the heat--and good for shooing away any red or blue or green fireflies that got too close without having to actually touch them, which she found herself doing a few times.
And as she walked, all of a sudden--there was a new aura, so close that she was sure she sohuld have sensed it sooner. It made her jolt, and she jogged forward, looking for who it might belong to--
And she spotted a man. Handsome, probably tall, borad-shouldered, with a cow's tail.
Oh. One of those Senshi from space, then.
"Hello? Excuse me, are you alright?"
xxxgenovianprince
Posted: Thu Jul 04, 2024 5:37 pm
Amateru startled at the sound of a voice, tail moving to flick away a bug without a thought. He hissed at the short jolt of electricity on his tail, but nodded politely at the nice lady.
"As alright as can be expected, I s'pose," he said, drawl thick. "Considerin' I just came from a home burnin' itself to death to as close to a nice, cool paradise as I'll get. That sharp a temperature drop, hoo, just about killed me as good as anythin'. Not to mention the appearance of life."
He inclined his head towards her again. "Might I ask your name? Mine's Amateru, Senshi of Cattle, and it's a pleasure to meet you. Pleasure to meet anyone, really."
Sonora blinked. Wrinkled her nose, briefly, at the description of Earth in the summer as cooler--but then, she supposed that a sticky 80s was probably better than some places, considering it was over a hundred degrees in other parts of the country. His world must have been absolutely roasting, then--maybe an effect of the Chaos, or maybe he was just from a desert planet or something. It wasn't as if she knew the ins and outs of outer space. Probably there were places like that, right? It only made sense, and it made her glad for the relatively temperate environment on Ida. She'd hate going out to an actual desert every time she went to her Wonder. The steaminess inside the greenhouse itself was bad enough.
"I'm sorry. You must be one of those long survivors, then? The ones whose worlds all died out and they were left alone?" It sounded terrible. Sonora hadn't yet met one, directly, but she knew they existed, and the thought of all that loneliness... "I'm Sonora, Squire of Ida. I...is there anything I can do to help you? I have space at home, if you need somewhere to stay. It'll be even cooler inside, we have climate controls here."
Considering she'd been left with an empty room when her older brother moved in with his new boyfriend, Sonora figured she could do worse than offer it to a nice cow man from outer space who needed somewhere to stay. Help him get on his feet and figure out his current situation. All of that seemed like a good, reasonable thing to do. And if her brother wanted back in, he'd just....have to deal.
genovianprince
Posted: Thu Jul 04, 2024 6:48 pm
Amateru nodded at the first question, curiosity piqued. There were other long-term survivors, like himself? Not everyone had died? They must be senshi, then—his heart leapt at the thought, that his sweet Emer might be—
No. He quashed that thought ruthlessly. Emer was dead. Had been dead for a while, before his own planet started to fall apart.
"I'd love a place to stay," he said gratefully. "I jus' got here, 'n I'm not sure where I'd go. I doubt anyone 'round here takes the minted Amateru renny. If I even have any on me that didn't rot away in the... Gosh, how long have I even been asleep? Wait, did you say climate controls? As in, it could be even cooler indoors than out here?"
Sonora looked thoughtful, for a moment. "No, we probably wouldn't take your currency. Officially, at least." Well. If someone tried to pay her in space dollars at Lavender Haze, she might take it. Just for the novelty. And also because she would have assumed they were high as a kite and therefore not possible to reason with. That was a common affliction among their customers.
"It'll be cooler inside, yes," she said. "We call it air conditioning? It's really nice, and you can get comfortable inside, I'll make us some dinner and get you some water--I bet you haven't eaten for a while, yeah?" She paused.
"I don't actually know how long it's been, sorry. It's 2024 AD? By the Earth calendar? Which is where you are? On Earth? Does that help at all?"
genovianprince
Posted: Thu Jul 04, 2024 7:23 pm
A thousand years. He almost tilted off his feet at that, leaning against another tree to prevent his bulk from going down.
"By the pasture," he said quietly, staring up into the stars. That just... confirmed it, then.
Most everyone he'd ever known, even if they were a senshi, would probably be dead. He doubted many were like him. Lucky enough. Or unlucky, if one looked at it with a poor attitude. He didn't know what to make of it, yet. Didn't feel lucky, though, not with his only love—
He swallowed. "I think I'd like to eat somethin' not filled with dirt, yeah," he said quietly, clearing his throat. "Thank you for the kind offer, Miss Sonora."
Sonora nodded. "Come on, then, I'll take you back to my place," she said. "We'll get you comfortable and settled, and then we can figure out what to do next."
And if her family had any questions, well...they probably wouldn't, actually. hER helping out some stranger was pretty in line.
"Oh! I do have a cat. Do you have any allergies or anything?"
genovianprince
Posted: Thu Jul 04, 2024 9:15 pm
Amateru would never cease to marvel at how kind a stranger could be. It couldn't anywhere close to Sonora's job to help him like this, and yet here she was, offering him space in her home and food to eat. He would need to find some way to pay her back for her extreme generosity. Somehow.
"Allergies? Nothin' I know of, but... Well, I wouldn't know if any Earth animals made me sick. Never got to visit before everythin' went to s**t—ah, pardon my language, Miss Sonora. I reckon we'll find out, though. I doubt I'll have any issue. And even if I do, I'll be happy for one night and a meal somewhere the sun don't try to boil my skin off and ash don't stir up to get in my mouth tryin' to eat," he rambled without thought. "I do appreciate you doing this for me. Will anyone at your home be bothered, though, bringin' a stranger back?"
"Okay, good," Sonora said, and she offered a smile and a laugh, shaking her head. "I live by myself, so there's no one to worry. And my family will trust my judgement if I'm offering space to a friend."
Maybe they weren't friends yet, but they could be. They would be. And Sonora would be glad for her chance to help out a stranger, especially one that so clearly needed it.
genovianprince
Posted: Sun Jul 07, 2024 3:32 pm
Well, that was good. He followed her easily, spying another charm on the ground and picking it up. Maybe he'd start a collection, heh heh.
