maskormenacelogs | poetry with amber imagery or something [OPEN]

Entry tags:

poetry with amber imagery or something [OPEN]

WHO: Lucina, various
WHERE: Maurtia Falls, De Chima, misc
WHEN: Early/mid-October
WHAT: assorted happenings
WARNINGS: labeled in subject headers

Maurtia Falls
Lucina's main haunts are still in this city of conflict -- same as it has been, those two and a half years ago. Gods, has it been so long already? So much else has changed...her, too.

She resides on a residential block in a rental house, and might be encountered in the wee hours of the morning on her way out to work, or perhaps on the rare day off, tearing up the sad excuse for a garden she'd tried (sort of) to maintain (and failed to) in preparation for winter.

Downtown, she frequents a cafe and pastry shop where she's made many a friend and good memory. Catching her before she hustles off on patrol or another duty is a great chance for a free treat and a chat...or perhaps a means of teaming up for a bit of crime busting?

At Helix, the base of operations for Aegis Force, practically her second home, she is constantly either at work or training for work. It's not as frantic and despairing as the month before, so she can be a cheerful spotter or sparring partner, or she can help with some kitchen chores or monitor duty! She also likes to take her breaks on the rooftop helipad, enjoying the cooler air as the weather starts to behave more like autumn.

De Chima
It's not a place she visits too often, but at least once a week, Lucina tries to make time to volunteer at the O'Malley Clinic. She's not much of a nurse, but if you ever wanted to know what it feels like to be bandaged up nearly immobile as a mummy for a simple scrape? She's your girl. Also don't you dare try to escape until treatment is over! She can double as a bouncer.

There's always a chance to catch her in the skies, as flying is her favorite pastime -- and it beats traffic. Hopefully she's not spying any trouble from on high, but if you're in a pinch, she can swoop down and lend a hand (or sword)!

Misc
You're welcome to put in a starter or come bug me @

whyellewhy to brainstorm

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Masquerain doesn't even seem to notice that he nearly divebombs her head with his spinning and twirling, but at her suggestion, he does turn towards the box, watching as Golisopod has taken a good portion of it already. He's a big boy, so it's really not that surprising, really. Pinsir seems to have given up trying to move the bigger bug, having not the strength to do it anymore, and thus he's scooping up rinds and stuffing them into his mouth. Glaring at Golisopod out of the corner of his eye as he does so.

Finally the little moth-like Pokémon flits over to the box, looking around for just the right piece. He finds it by the time Guzma's back, grabbing it and flying off to the couch to nibble on it. Not only does Guzma have Ariados, but so too does he have a Salandit on his shoulder, peeking out from under his hoodie. The former hopping off to investigate the box, only to get swatted at by Pinsir. Who then gets a web shot in his face, and is left trying to claw it off while Ariados helps himself to some pumpkin... because all Pokémon seem capable of eating plants, for some reason.

As for the Salandit, he seems fine just chilling on Guzma's shoulders. Resting his chin on one of his little hands, watching the bugs chow down with his squinty purple eyes.]

Surprised there's any left. Golisopod coulda probably eaten that whole box by himself.

[Yeah, he's not even thinking about introducing the Salandit, oops.]

I'm surprised they took to it so quickly, myself. [but then, should she? they loved those Pokeberries...but those were native foods, so...??] But I'm glad. All that carnage I caused on accident can go to good use and--

[she's turned her head to look Guzma's way, cut short by the sight of those purple slits looming from his hoodie. Lucina blinks.]

Oh-- how...how many Pokemon-friends do you have, actually? I suppose I never really new...

[Guzma's about to ask about what carnage she's talking about, that excitement in his eyes stopping short when she notices the Salandit. He doesn't even get to answer fully before the lizard emerges more to show himself off to her, nearly fwapping Guzma with his tail in the process.

Which earns him a discontented grunt from Guzma and a glare. Which immediately causes the Salandit to break that attention-whore persona it's got going, to look more apologetic and worried. However, Guzma merely pats its head, which eases the little guy.]

This one ain't mine. Borrowin' him from one of my boys. That's why Scizor ain't here, we did a little bit of a temporary swap.

[Scizor wasn't pleased at the idea that he was worth a single Salandit, but who was he to argue?]

Guessin' you ain't seen a Salandit before, huh?

[that's quite a little scene they've played out. Lucina hides some of her expression just by having a hand over her mouth for a moment, another old habit of obscuring too much mirth.

she shakes her head, withdrawing the hand, folding it in front of her.]

Not that I can recall. I'd have thought you had yourself a tiny wyvern hiding in your hood, had I not known any better... He's quite handsome.

[That compliment makes the little guy snap his head to Lucina, visibly preening. Puffing up a little, even. Yes, give him compliments, he's starving for affection, truly.

Guzma grabs the little guy from his shoulders, and holds him out to her. Salandit reaching his own arms out, doing grabby hands at her.]

Yeah, he's a pretty decent little dude, but he needs more training. Tupp's got three—wait.

A tiny what?

[His mind goes to Noivern, but he's pretty sure that wasn't what she said? He didn't quite catch what she said, doesn't help he's not familiar with the word.]

[oh-- she didn't expect to be offered a lizard in these trying times, but apparently that's so. she hesitates, but accepts the little creature and lets him fidget as he pleases, trying her best to be accommodating without much know-how, her attention pulled by Guzma's question.]

Huh? I--oh. A wyvern. Creatures from my world. If you've ever seen images of dragons here in this world, they're very similar-looking to that. Though...maybe not similar in reputation. [or number of legs, illustration pending.]

There were some who could befriend them, though it was very dangerous to do so. They were proud and picky creatures in the same way pegasi were...but often more brutal about rejection, and often quick to take offense. But there was a time Ylisse had many wyvern riders, and there weren't many who could withstand them if they were made an enemy of them.

[Since she had accepted the lizard, now she has to deal with him. He scurries onto her shoulders, fussing a bit to get comfortable, before he curls loosely around her neck, his tail looping around himself to make a complete circle.

Guzma just watches it for a second, before turning his attention back to Lucina.]

Yeah? Hmm...don't sound too different from Pokémon. Though, we ain't got wyverns, rather Noivern. They're a dragon-flying type.

[Though he has no idea what a Pegasi is.]

What happened to 'em?

[oh...so it's to be a lizard-necklace, is it? she'll awkwardly accept, if that's what it is please to be. strangely warm, though...so she'll try to pull some of her hair out of the way so it won't stick to her neck that's getting toasted here. all while Guzma's ruminating on Poke-verns and such. she can only imagine, given her limited knowledge of dragon Pokemon, that it might look like some bright orange-colored variant of Minerva...

as for their fate, that just pulls a grimmer expression on her face -- one that she's apologetic to sense herself getting, at least, for how she shakes her head a bit, her eyes flickering down toward the Pokemon still gorging down below.]

I...wish I knew the full arc of their story, but...ultimately, they met the same fate as the rest of my world. They'll have been destroyed, as everything else was.

[That...took a turn he wasn't expecting. And while he keeps his gaze on her for a long few moments, so too does he look to his Pokémon. He doesn't need to be gawking at her when she just shared with him something like that. It's weird, hearing something like that, that her home is apparently destroyed, that these wyverns she seemed fond of were all dead...

It doesn't quite make him feel guilty over his own desires to destroy his home—or what should be his home, but it does make him feel odd. It does make them an interesting foil. Lucina coming from a world destroyed, while Guzma comes from a world he wants to destroy. Less so wiping everything out, but enough to level it all, start it all over...

He's at a loss for what to say, and so for a good few moments he's just quiet. He's never been good at words for comfort, and he's not even sure if that's what she wants? It's not like he was aiming to dig this sort of sensitive info out of her with his question, but he sees now how it should have been obvious territory that he was trekking through.

One thing in particular does settle into his chest, and he can't fight the impulse and need to know:]

...Does that include you?

[A little blunt, but that's just how Guzma is. He knows this place is a little weird with its porting shit, so he's left wondering how she knows this, because as far as he knows dead people aren't...can't?? be here...????

Is Lucina dead????]

[it was most likely not a mistake to speak of it, but Lucina has to believe there was a better time or place to do so. some moment where they agreed to discuss more deeply the thorns and scars of their worlds, not...gentle talk of dragons. she's already berating herself for such a grave misstep as the silence draws out; that grim streak of hers continues to sabotage her, even well after escaping Grima's grasp.

she's trying to formulate a slapdash apology for sending the conversation into a tailspin when he asks of her fate, and while she probably shouldn't be too surprised to hear it, she somehow still is. she looks back up, eyebrows raised, her mouth pursed into a thin line for a beat longer before she shakes her head once more.]

No.

No, myself and...some others, we were able to reach something called an Outrealm gate. When I prayed to Divine Dragon Naga for aid, she told me that...it was already too late for the world. But that I could pass through there, go back in time, and try to save another instance of the world from the same fate.

[she shifts where she stands, folding her hands in front of her once more.]

That's actually...what I was doing, before I suddenly found myself here. [her mouth twitches as she tries to force some levity.] It was quite a shock...! I expected to see my homeland in brighter days, but instead, I was here.

[Silently he nods as she explains, a small shallow gesture as he tries to process it. It's really not too hard, he can relate some of it to things he knows at least. It's not like praying to gods is a new thing, considering the Tapu. Nor how useless they can be at times... He's not 100% on how the Ultra Wormholes work, but he knows they're gates to alternate realities, to other universes and what not...so maybe that's essentially what her Outrealm gate is.

What a depressing fate to be saddled with. To see everything you care about be destroyed, and then to be burdened with trying to save some alternate version of it. Like some cheap copy that's right enough to hit you in the heart and keep you invested, yet wrong enough to remind you of what you've truly lost.

And then to be brought here before you can even do it...]

That's rough.

[He says pretty plainly, but there's clear sympathy in the tone too. He's not being dismissive, but what can you even say? He too was interrupted before his and Lusamine's scheme could happen, and that sucked enough...but this is different. The weight isn't the same.]

All of it, not just showin' up here. But being stuck here for as long as you have, I bet that's torture, huh?

It...was. [her expression pinches for a moment as she reconsiders saying so.] I mean...it can be. But...this place is...more of a chance for a future than I've known since I was a child. [her mouth quirks again and she shrugs, shifting in place. she ought to find something amusing in how this is being accented by the noises of a bunch of gluttonous Pokemon chowing down at their feet, maybe say something of it, to alleviate the burden on him to have to react to such a weighty topic. it's not his to carry, after all, and it'd be unfair to saddle him with any of it.]

I know the threat that awaits me should I ever be returned to my task. And...if I'm the same Lucina my cousin knew, then...maybe I know the outcome, too.

[and whether or not she is that same Lucina who sees a victory over fell Grima? gods, she doesn't want to think about how much time she's spent wrestling with that. it's dreadful stuff, not knowing for sure if you're really meant for the greatness someone insists you are.

she sighs a little, then pushes a small smile on her face, her eyes downcast so she can peer at the little creature around her neck, unfolding her hands so she can lightly boop at its nose.]

But in a place like this... I can find a different future ahead of me. I've been able to see so much...learn so much, meet so many different people. [she ducks her head a little, a soft laugh in her voice.]

I've become very selfish here in ways. There's so much I want to keep for myself here, even though I know it isn't mine to stay. But it can be mine for as long as the present is here. And the future can be...far away for a little while longer. Whatever it might be. If that makes sense...

Edited 2019-10-05 03:19 (UTC)

It makes sense.

[He finally responds. Letting her get all of that out, his eyes never leaving her as she explained, as she opened up about this. It made him feel guilty in a way. How closed off he is about his own issues. He blinks his gaze away from her and down to Golisopod who seems full finally. Lifting his head to click lazily at his chops as he looks up at the two of them. Seeming blissfully unaware of the gravity of the topic.]

...But you ain't selfish. [a beat] For wantin' somethin' better for yourself.

[There's a weird edge to his voice, but it's not at her. It seems to come from something deeper than just this conversation. Maybe he's not only speaking to her. His eyes flick up to the Salandit around her neck, not directly at her though, oddly he's avoid her eyes. The Pokémon in question is loving the attention, even that little boop got a delighted trill from it, and now he's nuzzling up against her jaw line.

Guzma narrows his eyes a little.]

...The outcome your cousin knew—what was it?

[Salandit's nudging gets another quiet giggle out of her. she's grateful for the tiny bit of distraction she has, feeling quite the fool for having spoken of such dire things like this, when all it had been at first was talk of reptiles and such. Inigo was right; she really is a grim person, isn't she? even when she's not trying to be...

she offers Golisopod a warm look when she's glanced at and, tilting and lifting on her toes, she peers the gutted-out box with a bit of surprise. well, that certainly didn't go to waste, did it? she's glad.

her face warms a bit at Guzma's words, and she settles her feet flat back on the floor, keeping her gaze low. it feels strange to put such parts of her life out there for his assessment; she's not sure how she should take any response, frankly. she's even less sure, casting a quick glance up and seeing that expression of his, and for a beat she's quiet, her mouth pressed into a thin line.

the outcome...]

Well... [there'll be war. lots of it, no matter what she tries. losses, but...not to the scale of what she'd had to run from.

she'll see the faces of her parents again. and the one who betrayed them.]

Somehow, we'll keep my family alive, and we'll take Grima down. [and Owain will find a way to give their true parents a proper resting place. flowers, forever undisturbed, in a world that will never see the human race again...

she bobs her head with a nod before looking back up.]

He didn't give me all of the details. I think...he didn't want me to have all of that in my heart while I'm here. If all I thought about was the mission, nonstop, and it's been more than two years... [her mouth twitches.] I think I'd be more than a little insufferable. Right?

I dunno about insufferable. I can't say I'd blame ya thinkin' about it all the time.

[Insufferable...that word in particular sticks with Guzma for a moment, his eyes pulling away from Lucina's direction to settle more on his Pokémon again.

Pinsir has since removed the web from his face, sitting near the couch as he glares at Golisopod and Ariados that seem happy and plump from their meal. Golisopod seems content to watch the two talk, while Ariados nearly waddles his way up the wall to settle on the ceiling. Masquerain, having finished his rind of pumpkin, is dozing off again, looking like a silly little puddle of a bug on the cushion.]

So, you take down the big bad of your world, save your family—which means you succeed then, yeah? At least he told ya that much.

[He crosses his arms over his chest, thinking about this. She spoke of being a specific Lucina, and he gets where that's coming from, what with her messing with timelines and what not...it's all so complicated, but he thinks he gets it. However screwy it seems.]

Maybe it was a good idea that he didn't tell ya everything, like you said. Just the hopeful bits. There's enough here to weigh ya down, but then again...givin' you somethin' to be hopeful about with back home is kinda a double edge, in a way, huh?

[His own mind is a bit restless now, thinking about his own situation. What's waiting for him back home, how he wants to get back there sooner, rather than later, and yet...he feels conflicted. His eyes find themselves on Lucina again, scanning over her as if appraising her of something.

He's tried to keep his distance from people, tried to keep them back and away from him so he didn't get drawn in, yet that's happened despite those attempts. Here he is, in this...mess of a relationship with Lucina, something they haven't fully even named properly yet, and he cannot help but continue to be drawn to her.

Even his bond with Archie is a problem for his grand designs for leaving this place. Darin too, and the list kind of goes on. It's just the natural way of things, the natural need to form connections that even his robust and obnoxious ways cannot repel nor extinguish.

He shrugs, looking away from her again.]

Anyway, if anybody deserves to go home to a better endin', it's probably you. So, whatever comes from this place, you probably got loads better waitin' for you when you can finally leave.

I'm willin' to bet you're the right Lucina, can't imagine it being otherwise.

Edited 2019-10-10 18:53 (UTC)

Ha...

[she winces a little even as she breathes that out, her mouth drawn in a pained kind of smile.]

Well, I...I don't know about deserving or otherwise. [matters of deserving anything is what seemed to kick all of this they've got off, right? she won't forget those lines in a hurry.] But that's kind of you to say. [whether he wants it to be or not. honestly, she's not sure how he wants to be seen anymore: big, bad Guzma has more than a few softer edges than she'd realized before.]

Were I to be able to dictate much of anything about fate or this world? I'd say it could all stay connected. So if I were to ever go back... I could still remember it all.

[she fixes her gaze back on him -- easier to do, now with him looking elsewhere. she takes account of his expression, trying to cement it in mind next to those words he'd said.

going back...forgetting. she actually dreads it. she knows she wouldn't shirk her responsibilities, of course, because...she'd have had nothing like this to recall to make her want to. the Lucina she is now...will never be the one to go back and take arms against the fell dragon. would she have the resolve to? maybe. but in doing so...she'd still remember all the things of this world. she'd miss it.

she briefly wonders if she'd miss him, too.]

In any case, [she looks back to the full, lazy lumps splaying out all over the place.] I hope you weren't expecting them to do much at all. I seem to have knocked them all out...

Ain't kind, just true.

[He offers with a huff. As if that somehow makes it...less kind? It's still a kind thing to say, regardless of how he tries to frame it after the fact. However, that likely answers her question about how he wants to be viewed still, stubbornly holding onto the idea that he's not kind, that he's hard not soft.

Though, the idea of leaving this world open in a way is...interesting. Not a thought he considered before, not a possibility he even entertained as possible. Being able to remember it all, that'd be...difficult.

Lucina bringing attention to the sleepy Pokémon snaps him out of his conflicted thoughts, his gaze focusing on them once more, rather than the unfocused distance stare that it was.]

Nah, I wasn't expectin' much today. Kinda a lazy day as it is, so ain't no problem.

[But his mind can't let go of the earlier topic so easily. He looks as conflicted as he feels, his eyes drifting to her again for a moment.]

...Does what happens here matter so much to you, that you really want to keep this and your world connected so you can remember it all?

[His voice is steady and carries a tone fitting the conflict of his features. If anything, it just goes to show how genuine the question is.]

Even all the crappy shit that flies? Y'think it's worth it?

There will always be struggles, you know. Some bigger than others. [y'know. like an apocalypse!

Lucina shifts and moves over, guiding Salandit to settle in her hands before lifting him up to climb back onto Guzma, her expression still soft and her eyes somber.] I would be doing an unkindness to those who struggle...if I were to decide to forget my own. And I can't truly value the wonderful things I've known here if I didn't realize how much they shined compared to the dark times.

[she chances another glance up at him, her expression searching. there's an echo of past talk they'd had -- the more one-sided sort in the park. but he's the one asking and listening.]

Even you letting me be here right now...means a bit more because of where we started.

[it means both of them decided to look past the things about each other that rankle and take a chance with...very little idea of what to expect. even now, she doesn't, and it's why she holds her breath for a beat.]

Well, yeah...

[Guzma takes Salandit easily enough, even if the little guy seems less inclined to go, since Lucina's so nice!! and attentive!! and gave him nose boops..!! he acquiesces and slinks up Guzma's arms to curl around his broad shoulders once again. Not without staring lovingly at Lucina, maybe giving a little flirty curl of his tail at her.

Guzma's own eyes meet Lucina's as she looks him over, saying what she does...and maybe there's a weird warmth to his cheeks. Quickly he looks away once he realizes that.]

—Yeah, I guess so.

[Deflection, dodge, hide... it's just what he feels he has to do when he starts to feel a little too vulnerable. Something that seems to be happening a lot around Lucina, he finds. Yet, he doesn't always hate it. Not like he normally does.]

Don't it seem like it'd make things back home a little complicated, though? Well, maybe not for you.

[But for him...]

[her eyebrows raised a little, seeing him redden enough to be noticed. though her mouth quirks on one side because of the little lizard's flirting, her heart thumps because of the color on Guzma's face. it got her rocking up her toes to peer before she realizes it, and she has to set herself back down flat when she does, a bit embarrassed.

but he'd chucked the ball back in her court, so...]

...I suppose in a way. Maybe. [her brow furrows, thinking about it.] But...it would be something to hang onto. I wouldn't be the only Lucina of House Ylisse there, after all. And that little girl growing up there? She's the one who actually belongs there.

[she shrugs her shoulders, looking away, rocking back on her heels, hands folded behind her back.]

It'll be heartening to recall a place where my friends and I weren't the only ones displaced, I think. And know that there's many people out there who remember me fondly.

[Belonging, now that's certainly a theme to provoke thought. After all, wasn't part of why he followed Lusamine and her schemes to destroy the place he was a pariah of? To beat it down for always beating him down, to break it down and build anew? To make a place where he and his belonged?

While Lucina's not an outcast because of societal reasons like him and his team, she's an outcast by...her circumstance, he guesses is the best way to put it. But even in this world, she didn't really belong, did she? None of them did, OTO was a direct response to the fact they shouldn't be here. An extreme response, but not far from his own in the face of everything back home.

Being pushed aside, failed, forgotten...and the encroaching of outsiders, changing what Alola refused to change, to make it easier for them to be part of their world, yet turning their backs on the ones already there. The ones they left behind...

The thought pisses him off, and it's made apparent by the fact that—well...Saladit disappears suddenly. Guzma doesn't react, not surprised by it, merely knowing he'll have to contact Tupp to get the Salandit back. A small inconvenience, really.]

I can see the appeal. [He finally answers.] Even if this ain't a world where any of us belong, what's the point of goin' to your own home when you ain't nothin' but a stranger there, right?

[His eyes flick to her, his brow knitting tightly together. Golisopod lets out a worried rumble as he looks at Guzma, sensing the tension from him.]

Maybe staying here wouldn't be so bad, in that case.

[It's either go back and make a place for himself, or stay here and make a place for himself. It didn't matter where he went, because like Lucina, in his own way, he didn't belong.]

[Lucina's eyes widen with alarm as the Salandit just...vanishes, without any pomp or circumstance. just...in the midst of Guzma speaking, his expression darkening, it...vanished.

he says staying wouldn't be so bad, but the lizard just disappeared.]

Um. Guzma-- [her eyes wince, flickering from his shoulder to his face before pointing.]

It...the, um. Little wyvern...?

[Guzma stares at her for a moment, before he looks down, almost like he either forgot or didn't realize.]

...Oh. That happens when I—[Well, guess that solidifies what makes his nullifying powers work, huh?]—when I get pissed off, my nullifying powers happen.

For Pokémon it sends them back to their trainer. He's fine. I'll just pick him up when I visit the base.

...Oh...

[still. what a surprising and unpleasant echo of past events, right? if it activates when he's angry, then...]

I had no idea. [that explains why she could barely pick him up off the floor at Helix, too. huh.] But if that's the case-- [then he's angry now, right? why? what'd she do? besides...be kind of a mood-killer...]

Forgive me, I--I actually...didn't mean to bring up grim things from my home. It's not that I mind you knowing or not, only... [engh.] It's not...very enjoyable to hear about, is it?

[Guzma's doing his best to make peace with the fact he's the living embodiment of the very thing that hurt him so badly. It's almost like a cruel mockery of his general state, isn't it? Not that he's so self-aware to realize it.

He shakes her head when she starts to apologize. After all, it's better that he knows, right?]

It ain't you that's got me pissed, don't worry. You ain't done me no wrong here.

I'm glad y'told me.

[He turns and heads over to the couch, scooping Masquerain's sleeping lump of a form up into his arms as he takes a seat. Holding the snoozing bug in his lap as he looks to her.]

Just got me thinkin' about shit from home. I'm fine.

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