Conversation Space II.

[powersthatbe]

As Thorne shared with the network, Travelers who vanish find themselves alone in a small room. But it doesn’t look quite as described last time. Paper lanterns hang in the corners, and a lemniscate of live, spicily scented blue roses traces a figure eight on the floor. A little marble plinth sits beside the looping roses, with a champagne flute balanced on it, pink, fizzy liquid quietly effervescing within. In place of the throne that was there before, each half of the loop holds a brown leather sphere - a yoga meditation-ball chair. They’re a little tricky to balance on.


The walls, floors, and ceiling are tiled, a prismatic fade from one color to another, each tile unique, just slightly different in hue than those around it, each colored line giving a sense that it belongs to a bigger pattern, but never revealing enough to allow anyone certainty about what that pattern might be. It is only a glimpse of a larger world… in this small, quiet space.

Comments

[cupidand]

"Hey, hey, simmer down," she says. "It was only a suggestion. Besides, that kind of thing doesn't always work right. You need to be able to communicate, you know? Otherwise it ends up in a mess where people fall out of ambit one after another."

[rustyhonesty]

"Yeah. Relationships rely a lot on communication. I've noticed." At least he seems to be calming down from his small anger... even if he's still bright red.

"Eren and I do get along fine these days, but... he's more like an idiot brother? At most."

Mikasa had also become more family-like even if there were still parts of him that were hopelessly in love with her every time she smiled or did something for him.

[cupidand]

"Ah, yeah. I'm familiar with those. Well, idiot siblings, anyway. You ever meet Cairbre? Or Hakan Caesar? You guys might know that one better as Emperor Emperor."

[rustyhonesty]

"Yeah, I've met Emperor Emperor when I was infiltrating... wait. Are you saying they're your siblings?"

[cupidand]

"Kinda. Sorta. Yes-and-no. We're a lot of things to each other, some of 'em at the same time. Cairbre's more my sib than Hakan, but they're both sibling-ish. Of course," she says in unison with herself, suddenly doubling in front of him, "my truest sib is myself."

[rustyhonesty]

Sudden dublication makes Jean jump quute a bit and he's once again glad he hadn't been drinking because holy crap.

"... right. Lovers. Of course."

[cupidand]

"It's great when you don't have a date to the dance."

[rustyhonesty]

"Well, if you ever run into a situation that you don't have anyone to dance with, I wouldn't mind dancing with you again. ... either of you. Uh. Are you two different?"

[cupidand]

"Mm. It's complicated." She combines into one girl again, then grins cheekily at him. "Hey, do you think you guys are going to have a dance again? Because, if you do and you don't have anyone to go with..."

She flutters her eye-lashes at him.

[rustyhonesty]

"Uhh... I'd guess we are? It was such a success last year, so I don't see why we wouldn't have one again." Though did she... just ask him on a date?

"I... think a friend of mine wanted to go with me if I there's another... "

[cupidand]

"Oh, okay," she says. "But you'll save a dance for me, right?"

[rustyhonesty]

"Yeah. I'll keep a look out for you."

[cupidand]

She grins. "Good! So, any other questions for me, before I send you back?"

[rustyhonesty]

"Just one." He might as well ask, since he has an opportunity. "Why are you competing? What lies at the end for the winner that's so important?"

[cupidand]

"The World," she says. "That's why it's the World Series, you know. 'Cause that's what we're playing for. Power, primacy, meaning, all that good stuff. We're here to see ourselves reflected throughout reality, as the saying goes."