ꙮ There are not, as it turns out, a great many cellars in Ripple, and most of what there are are devoted to goods storage, especially since they built the bridge to the main Academy complex and a bunch of stuff passes through Ripple’s Rest rather than going directly there. However, there’s at least one cellar walled with sturdy reinforced coral and lightly warded, kept for Academy Business, and Caion, being on Academy Business, has claimed it for the time being, and brought certain of Archie’s Research Assistants with him.
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- Aurelius
- The Awoken
Scene Archives
← Active ScenesA Cellar, In Ripple
#hunter
#saint
#archie
#wolf
#caion
is awake Bright and Early for this not an all vaguely menacing clandestine meeting, and probably brought Salme along with him and the tablet when he arrived.
: “This is as good a place as we’re going to get outside of darting off to an outlying tower or the Academy itself. So. You had something to show me?”
was brought along with Aurelius. Some gnosis-miracle has dried her boots. You almost can’t tell she swam in the ocean in her clothes.
is hanging out near the back of the group, mostly just watching–though he seems to mostly be watching Caion.
: “I feel like it was more I had something you wanted desperately to see but sure.” With a flick of the hand he produces the tablet from somewhere, and plops it down onto a table or crate or cabinet or wherever’s handy.
: “I.” Salme mutters under her breath. “That is our child, Aurelius.”
: “Learning a lot about almachadta biology and culture here I guess.”
follows in suit, a strange feeling of nostalgia washing over him as he enters the well-maintained but still slightly dank cellar, looking closely and curiously at the tablet. “It seems a little early in your relationship for that,” he says with the faintest flicker of a smirk.
distractedly, “Yes, that’s what I said, you had something to show me.” Of course he desperately wanted to see it, and he steps closer, peering rather intently. Certainly not reaching out to touch it, yet. “What… is it? In your words?”
pokes Archie in the side, hard. “Yeah. I forgot to use protection and Aurelius produced that.”
does very quietly snort under his breath, and smile out of the corner of his mouth.
gives an amused look and rubs the bridge of his nose. “At least it seems to have been a painless birth.”
: “It’s a tablet. If I had to describe what it does, though… It uses gnosis to produce a small Sealed Space when you physically connect with it and concentrate upon the energy within it. When it’s more fully finished, it’ll also function as a recording and playback device for either manually inserted ideas, or semi-automatically extracted memories.”
raises -both- eyebrows, glancing between Aurelius and Salme and then back to the tablet. “May I examine it?”
: “And may I join you?”
: “Be a bit weird to say no at this point.” He gestures for them both to go ahead.
: “Mind you support the head,” he says, drily.
: “Also be careful about the …” she looks at Archie and mouths sun.
nods at her, remembering what she had described. “What was the trigger for that, again?”, he whispers to her.
nods appreciatively, glances at Archie with a suddenly -very- familiar expression on his face, and reaches towards the tablet- without touching it, at first, just holding his hand above it like he’s feeling around the outlines of something.
: “There’s a switch. I actually don’t know if there’s a physical switch.” She blinks, and then in a regular voice. “Aury, is there a physical switch? For the … you know?”
: “Yes…”
: “And a large DO NOT TOUCH sign above it.”
nods. “Probably wise.” He watches Caion work appreciatively, watching him focus intently on the tablet. Not wanting to disturb his focus, he approaches the tablet too, gently placing a hand on Caion’s shoulder, lending his own not-inconsiderable mental capacity to the Naïad’s.
Is there something akin to a help action that I can do or roll for here?
: “Also, yes, it is siphoning energy from the Constellations and a few Suns, before you ask or think you’re reading that wrong.”
very quietly utters a “First Principles,” and his fingertips touch the tablet’s surface.
falls back next to Aurelius. “What happened to not saying the first thing you think?”
ꙮ To the rest of you, Caion immediately becomes an alabaster-and-gold statue, until such point as you follow him in, at which point you find him staring in absolute wonderment, turning very slowly in a circle a few steps past the threshold.
: “If he’s even half as smart as he and Archie are leading us to believe, he’d notice.”
pokes at the Caion statue experimentally a few times after he connects. “I was curious if it’d work the same way for other people though, so good to know.”
nods. “No argument there. Now, shall we?” His hand moves from his now-stone boyfriend’s shoulder and rests on the tablet, allowing himself to slip inside.
eyes the statue-Caion with a bit of a jaundiced eye. “That still disturbs me…” But nevertheless, he rests a finger on the tablet and heads inside.
nods in return, then moves to connect.
ꙮ Vwoom-vwoom-vwoom.
considers, very briefly, Shenanigans, then decides this isn’t the time, and connects as well.
steps through the bubble, and then plops down on a couch in the center of the room.
watches Caion looking through the space and slips into the space in the crook of his arm, following his gaze. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”
decides to let Archie and Caion have their moment, and decides that this other Shenanigan will work just as well, and plops herself down in Aurelius’ lap.
laughs, in open delight, very solidly mid -thorough- poking and prodding at one of the blueprint bookshelves, staring -up- into the lights, into the Light in the centre. “What… in the vast depths and far reaches…” He just laughs, again, outright -wiggles- over to Archie to hug him - ah, no, just hugs him when Archie slips close, looks like he also wants to give Salme a hug but isn’t one hundred percent certain that’s Appropriate- “It is. It’s utterly magnificent. And… that threshold, that takes you… back? Is…” -he tilts his head to the side. “Hunh. Present on both sides of the threshold.” Some part of him is going a million miles a minute. “Sealed Spaces were only -theorized-, that’s…”
: “You’ll find they manage to do all sorts of wondrous things through sheer initiative and ignorance,” Wolf drawls. “Don’t know what they can’t do.”
oofs slightly before responding. “Entrance and exit both yeah.”
sticks her tongue out at Wolf, but seems pleased. “Ideally we’ll find a way to give everyone … a way to access the space that doesn’t require touching the tablet.”
: “We’re not HERE, here, strictly speaking either…? Pretty sure it’s just astral projecting our conscious inside while it covers our bodies in a protective armor, but yeah.”
: “Well, that’s hazardous,” but he says it very lightly and almost like a compliment, and he fishes around in his pockets for something, hands it to Archie. “Standard Bubble-tester. It shouldn’t cause any problems with the space. Do you mind if I pop outside and let you activate it?”
takes it from him. “Of course. Remind me, what will I need to do with it? It’s been a while.”
doesn’t skip a beat, although he briefly meets Archie’s gaze and gets distracted by it. “Flick the thread-end of the droplet, the whole thing will explode in a puff of gnosis. Hold your breath or it’ll make you think of something sad. Count of ten, assuming… time flows the same way outside as in?”
nods. “Based on preliminary testing, that does appear to be the case.”
: “It initially did not, but it does now. I assume it just needed time to settle after being set up.” He stares up at the ceiling.
: “Excellent.” And he - stops, very deliberately nuzzles into Archie’s hair, stops again at the threshold. “Ten-“ -and then steps through.
then reaches up and around Salme to cover his mouth with a long sleeve before Archie can pull the Party-Pooper.
ꙮ It’s a little glass teardrop.
counts silently in his head, nodding with each count to make sure the others are ready in time, and gives it a flick.
tilts her head curiously and does not cover her mouth.
gives Salme a very deliberate ‘why are you like this’ look, but also, does not stop her from making questionable choices.
takes a slow, deep breath and holds it just as Archie flicks the glass.
ꙮ Similar to the flare, really, but a lot more crude - you flick the narrow end, it shatters, it’s magic and won’t get shards everywhere. There’s a ripple of gnosis and a gust of wind, and if you’re breathing in when it passes you feel a sudden, -sharp- pang of utter, unspeakable loneliness.
returns through the threshold, a second or two after the ten-count, eyes WIDE. “TOWER AND CIRCLE. I.” He takes a -very deliberate, slow breath, looks antsy as all hell. “The- the statues. The.”
: “First off- it’s a protocol-perfect Bubble.”
thumbs up with his free hand.
: “Second, what in the carefully-enumerated Virtues- you said this was… an intuitive construct? I have seen. A statue like that before.”
: “Was it Tasna?”
: “Salme did most of the interface end, while borrowing ideas from the Duelist Mask. Which is a physical object in addition to a Constellation.”
retains eidesis. “Yes, it was. I’ve seen her… body.”
: “She IS alive on another world, if you were wondering if us being alive might mean there’s hope on that end.”
slowly paces over to Archie and puts an arm around his shoulders, by way of reaction.
shoots Aurelius a look that, if we weren’t Bubbled, might actually kill on Samudra. He turns back around and leans into Caion. “I was going to tell you when we had the chance, but I guess now’s as good a time as any. We don’t know for sure what state she’s in, but she’s out there, and we’re going to find her.”
shrugs. “(You said Bubbles were fine and that we could trust him.)”
: “(They are and we can, but there’s some things I’d prefer to be the one to break the news about.)”
: “No, it was correct to wait until we were Bubbled. My eidesis is strong, but that’s cold saltwater of a data point.” His arm tightens around Archie’s shoulders. “Speaking of which, I have a question.”
: “How much did you forget?”
presses her hand over Aurelius’ mouth. “I hadn’t realized she might have … been someone to you. I apologize for bringing it up so callously. I only know her through stories.”
gives a sharp-eyed look at Caion, at those words.
: “I am correct, then.”
slumps a little at the question. “Too much. Far too much.”
turns towards Archie- and his arm tightens, and he presses his forehead against the Kushtaka’s, gently, and says something only he can hear.
looks at Wolf, then cuts her eyes toward the exit of the library. Should they …?
looks up at Caion with glistening eyes. He turns slowly around the library, this repository for memories, a place of preservation and safekeeping. The events of the past few weeks catch up to him all at once, and here, safely within the Bubble, he feels his chest heave with emotion, and before he can stop himself, he weeps.
makes a slight negating gesture with his hand at Salme. He does, however, turn his gaze away, up to the Sun.
finds a very interesting thread to pick at in Aurelius’ robe.
curls both arms around Archie and holds him close, forehead pressed into his hair, and the gentle light of the Sun shines down on all of them. He has questions, but none of them matter at the moment.
looks up at Salme and very slowly mouths ‘wow can not believe you got me in trouble with the kushtaka for something you brought up’ at her.
tilts her head at him, like she doesn’t understand (she does).
sobs for longer than he’s used to. Certainly, longer than he intended, and in more company than he had hoped to let see him like this. He presses his face into Caion’s chest in a futile attempt to muffle the sound as it echoes around the Library. Finally, he regains his composure, straigtening himself back up a bit. “It’s been tough. I’ve built so much of my life and identity around the things I know, only to have them ripped away. But even when I couldn’t remember details, I remembered the missing, the longing, the yearning. And now I’m here, and you’re here, and Aunt Silver-Throat is here, and Ksenija… well, I think she just left, but at least she was here, and…” The sentence fades away slightly as his voice quivers, but he wrestles back control of the tightening in his chest. “And every corner I turn feels like a memory locked up in the back of my mind being resurfaced like the kelp forests at low tide. More than anything, I feel like I have a lot of lost time to start making up for. At the Academy. With my family. With you.”
is breathing, very very steadily, and his face is very neutral- not stony, not bracing himself against the tide, just still water, but he’s there, and holds Archie while he talks. “I can’t… imagine what that must have been like. I.” He has to pause, for a moment. “You’re here. You made it back. I -knew- you would. I always knew-“ A slow breath, and a slow exhale, and he looks up, at Wolf and Aurelius and Salme. “Did you… all forget? I’m still guessing. Piecing together the theory. And if I’m right, I’m so sorry.”
just nods, quietly. “Some more than others. All…lost too much. We’re not sure yet why.”
: “Yeah, memory wipe was part of the whole Ordeal for all six of us.”
: “It’s. Complicated, for me, but yes.”
: “First Principles. If… if there is anything I can do to help you come to an understanding of what has happened, and why. I vow it, I will.”
: “Oh the what was actually really easy to figure out so we’re good on that front, but I’m sure there’s a bunch of other things you could help us with instead.”
: “Well, if you’re offering, I would like to ask you and Archie for some help in understanding the mechanism that allowed me to remember more than the others. But that is …. something for another time I suspect.”
: “Aurelius…” Wolf’s tone is somewhere between exasperated and warning.
: “That was vague enough to work as a lead in for Archie’s retelling of events.”
starts to open his mouth, stops, looks instead to Salme. “Please, for the sake of all the lesser gods, teach him the meaning of ‘segue.’”
looks sternly at Aurelius again. “My assistant is exaggerating, as is his wont. We have a rough idea of what happened to us, but not necessarily the mechanism for our memory loss, or if there’s some way of reversing it. I don’t doubt your eidesis for a moment, but there is much and more we are yet to tell you. Are you ready to hear it? What do you already know? You mentioned a theory?”
: “Before any of that. Archie… while we’re bubbled. I don’t know if you recall what we were working on before you-“ -he inhales sharply. “I managed to complete the experiment, I used your technique to determine the age of a noöplankton, and the results are incomprehensible to me, and it has been etching a hole in my brain for tides.”
gives a long-suffering sigh and says, “I am still listening,” and then kisses Aurelius. Hard.
: “May I speak of my results?”
: “I feel like it’s really disingenuous to ask me to wake up at the asscrack of dawn to do show and tell and answer weird questions and then get upset at me for doing so, but what do I know.” Aurelius rolls a shrug while pouting.
very very visibly swallows several sentences in sequence, and instead makes a gesture of acquiescence to Caion.
nods to Caion eagerly. “Please. Was our hypothesis confirmed?”
and is then no longer talking.
: “The noöplankton are at least two hundred and fifty thousand years old. I don’t understand how that could be possible.”
does NOT shout hey i recognize that number, because he is incapable of shouting, you see.
: “Nothing… the core sample from the Septentrione, -nothing- we’ve ever studied came… remotely close to that. I don’t…”
makes decisive use of tongue to make sure Wolf, not Aurelius, is the one who grants whatever context they have to add to that.
blinks at that number, eyebrows going high into his hair. “Salme,” he says slowly. “I do hate to interrupt, but…how many cycles, did you say? How long, since the Mask..?”
raises a hand while making an OK sign.
: “You can keep going, Salme. I’m sorry to go behind your back, but I took a count at the shrine after everyone left.”
chuckles, just a little. “It is less the count of cycles that I am looking for, than the years since they began.”
breaks and rests her head against Aurelius’ collarbone. “That’s fine,” she says. “I can’t give an accurate count anyway.”
glances between Wolf and Archie, utterly calmly.
slides off Aurelius’ lap to sit next to him on the couch, watching.
: “An estimate, then.” He smiles a bit, then catches Caion’s look, and sighs. “Perhaps Archie should be the one to broach this, but I am given to blunt speech–and if you’ll forgive the metaphor, I fear it is time to pull the bandage off.” He takes a deep breath. “I shall not insult your intelligence, or your perception. You know quite well, I assume, that, save for Archie, we are not of Samudra.”
: “(Also yes it’s the same amount of time, obviously!)”
: “I can answer the question of how long, too, though my answer came not from the tally but from a brief moment of connection to the Song. Despite what Aurelius claims, from my observations, I’d say about fourteen centuries, which matches our dating of the Serpentrione ice. Which means,” he says, looking up at Caion, “the noöplankton pre-dates the point of the separation of our worlds. They were here when it was just the Earth.”
nods at Wolf. Glances between him and Salme, briefly. “The two of you… and Unua… and the Awoken… and Aurelius. With Samudra, that implies a five-way symmetry-“ -and he glances at Archie, and the corners of his mouth go up. “You were right, weren’t you? My beautiful, brilliant scholar.”
: “Me and Unua are from the same place, actually.”
: “I and Salme are from the world called Almachadta,” Wolf confirms. “And Aurelius and Unua are from a world of burning gnosis called ‘the Beast.’ But I believe you are correct. There are five worlds, each corresponding to and suffused with a particular type of gnosis.”
: “He didn’t pick up anyone from Mu for Goddess knows what reason.”
just frowns and chews his lower lip, at that.
: “Hunh.” Caion briefly experiences the virtue of Relinquishment, and gives Aurelius another glance-over.
does a Badri-level eyebrow-raise and Wolf’s expression.
: “Do you wanna explain it to him slowly or should I just toss the pamphlet to ‘em?”
: “Five-way symmetry. Ancient structures, Ancient tools, all exhibit five-way rotational symmetry. The five fundamental timbres of gnosis. I’ve always wondered.”
exhales slowly. “Perhaps we should exercise some degree of compassion and tact, Aurelius? Instead of impatience?”
: “I asked for a reason~”
: “And you have been answered.” With a smile, that looks more like gritted teeth.
: “Are we like, 100% sure you’re not claimed Team Dad…?”
: “Are you quite sure you would like me in that role?” The smile now looks more like fangs.
stands up and walks over to Caion and Archie. She pulls out the Mask. “My world. Our world,” she nods at Wolf, “destroys itself utterly in cycles. This is the only link that persists. The Mask keeps the memories between cycles, and it is my job to bear it. I am happy to … share what memories within it that I can, though it’s a … flourishing thing and it does not give information so clearly as you’d like.”
: “I’m definitely not asking for myself you just seem so keen to go there anytime I don’t happen to align with your - actually this is probably not the time to get into this.”
: “Part of our journey,” Wolf says, softly, looking directly at Caion, “Is to attempt to find a way to break the cycle Almachadta is trapped in. In the process, we have learned far more than we expected.”
seems blissfully capable of cutting out the backchatter while he’s rapidly reformulating all of his fundamental theories of reality. Would that we were all so capable. He glances at Salme, tilting his head to one side. Glances at the Mask. Meets Wolf’s gaze. A lightdrinker might say he was (rotating) things with hazardous alacrity.
: “But…mm.” He frowns. “Archie, would you prefer to speak of our time before our return to Almachadta? Or shall I?”
nods. “To clarify, the 1300 years presents the length of Almachadta’s current cycle, which aligns with our understanding of the age of Samudra. But if all five worlds separated at the same time, and Almachadta has had over 200 cycles, it may stand to reason that Samudra is somehow un- and re-made too. If the noöplankton survive this process, it may be that other things do, too.”
closes her eyes. “The noöplankton and also your … at least one of your Polite Visitors is also about as old.”
stares at Salme. “How do you know that?”
glances sharply at Salme at that bit of information.
: “See you all think I’M the cognitive hazard but you have no fucking clue.”
is, very suddenly, -very- intent, and breathing with utter, absolute control. Archie’s seen this a few times.
takes a deep breath and is very clearly counting to ten, himself, though it’s probably not for the same reasons as Caion.
looks at Salme with a mix of interest and alarm that immediately settles back into rhythmic, controlled breathing, synchronizing with Caion’s. “How did you reach that conclusion?”
opens her eyes and meets Aurelius’ gaze, because it’s easier to meet his unimpressed look than anyone else’s. “I went swimming. I saw–when we saw the Visitor on the Glass Ship, I saw something beautiful, but strange. Beautiful and strange. And so I went swimming and I cast out a line of gnosis to greet it, to tell it that I was a visitor too, and I felt, in reply … many things, but something as ancient as the sea itself.”
grins, insanely, at Salme, before he can control his face.
controls it, almost immediately.
inhales sharply, eyes briefly going wide–his eyes flicker to Caion, file that away–and settle back on Salme. “And I thought,” he says mildly, “That I could be somewhat rash.” He laughs in spite of himself, and brushes hair back out of his face.
simply taps Salme on the forehead, once, without offering any judgement.
looks pensive. “We’ve always been taught to avoid the Polite Visitors, that they tend to incite thought-storms in those who focus on them too intently. Could it be because they tell people about Samudra’s own cycle, whatever form it may take? It seems like a plausible enough theory to be worth investigating.”
wiggles, very slightly, heels to toes. If he had a tail, it would be thudding. He -can’t- control that, and it’s lucky he doesn’t. “Two hundred times one thousand three hundred is two hundred and sixty thousand.” A sharp, vibrating exhale, and his fingers are tight on Archie’s arm, not painfully but- “The Septentrione’s ice is as old as your world.” Inhale. “And… I can… I am nearly certain, with that data, that Salme is correct, the Polite Visitors are as old as the noöplankton. I’ve speculated it for some time but I lacked data. It’s… why I -wanted- to properly age a noöplankton.”
: “There’s … one more thing. After I sent that message out, I received … well, a vision, there is no other word for it, but after that some noöplankton came with a message.”
: “They -what-.” His gaze flicks up towards Salme, again. Corners of his mouth still quirked up.
just blinks slowly at Salme, listening intently.
: “And I’m going to be selfish and keep the message for myself, at least for now, but there were thirteen of them. Twelve spoke. And they were even coherent, in their own way. They said it was from It, which Swims Below. And they were really concerned about the ontology of fish, but I think that’s a separate matter.”
: “Thirteen, one silent…” His tone is tinged with just a hint of wonder. “Do you think? Truly…?”
laughs, again, in wonder. “What Swims Below, indeed. I’ll have to make sure they sing it for you while you’re here.”
: “It’s hard to not at least make the connection. Twelve constellations, and one missing. Well, missing there, but not here.” He looks up at the skylights.
gives Salme a tired, exasperated look.
: “There are… we -sing- about things, sometimes, that we can’t talk about in words. And Whisker-Clan are, particularly, keepers of knowledge otherwise considered… hazardous, I suppose.” He wiggles like he should be pacing but he’s very invested in not moving a step away from Archie, either. “So there’s a song about the Polite Visitors, and what they used to be named, a generation ago, the generation before that.” Singsong: “Because naming is knowing, and knowing is drawing-near, and drawing-near is danger.” An almost wry smile.
frowns at Aurelius. The exasperation seems unearned for this part. Though. “Also, despite … how he’s coming across, Aury practiced excellent … ei-dei-sis … and didn’t ask about it when I told him I threw myself in the ocean recklessly. I’m honestly surprised you’re taking it well,” she says to Archie.
looks like he almost wants to ask a question, at that, but keeps it stuffed behind his eyes. He really has never quite stopped watching Caion, however, save for moments of distraction, ire, or awe.
: “Oh, I think you’re all mad, to be clear, and I’m going to be keeping one eye on the weather and the other eye on all five of you as long as you’re in my sight.” He says it lightly, though. “No storms yet. And you brought a portable Bubble with you.” A beat. “Be… careful who you talk about this with, at the Academy, though.”
: “Oh. I was going to tell everyone it was my research interest,” she says with a bit of a pout.
barks out a soft laugh.
: “Aye. We have all…” –And he gives a look of grudging respect to Aury, then– “I think, done our best to be careful. None of us wish harm to you or yours. Or your world.”
looks at Salme. “Frankly, if I was goimg off only what I personally remember of the Polite Visitors, I’d be furious at you for doing something so reckless. But as we’ve established,” he says, turning to Caion, “there’s a lot I don’t remember. If Caion’s cool with it, I am too. Though please do be careful.”
: “If I may ask, while we are Bubbled.”
: “Wolf, Aurelius. Did -you- see something… ‘beautiful and strange’, on my Aunt’s ship, on the way here, as well?”
inhales slowly, exhales. “At first, I saw something fearful. Something of my world.” He smiles, just a tinge of that wonder in his expression again. “And then I saw something else. What I assume it truly looks like, behind the terrible seeming.”
: “Yes, but it was also very distinctly menacing and attempting to make me feel pangs of loneliness and regret, as Archie mentioned.”
: “Fascinating. Do you– I would speak with Unua and- ‘Awoken’? About this. I wonder.”
: “For clarity … I didn’t see anything like what belongs on Almachadta. I saw a giant eye, and shifting iridescent streamers, and I met its gaze. I don’t know if that’s what they look like or not but. Was that like yours, Wolf?”
: “Unua didn’t seem to react to it from what I could tell, but Awoken definitely had that distant, far away look in his eye when he’s feeling something uncomfortable.”
: “When the seeming broke, yes. Gigantic beyond even the Great Beasts of Almachadta, with a gazing eye, and great tendrils.”
lets out a long, slow, steady breath.
turns, -now-, towards Archie, and buries -his- face in Archie’s fur, for a few moments.
: “Unua probably wouldn’t have reacted, and I agree that Awoken seemed–uncomfortable. You can certainly ask them. They’ll both tell you, I suspect.”
: “Also the whole acting like he was possessed thing…? But I figured you saw that.”
frowns in Aurelius’ direction. “Which ‘you’ was the creature trying to make feel loneliness and regret?”
: “I thought I was supposed to be avoiding uncomfortable knowledge points?”
: “We’re in a bubble and it seems relevant.”
waves vaguely in their direction. “I’m full to the brim with baffling questions. Say what you will, I’ll sink it until I can deal with it.”
: “Well I mean, to be clear I do have SEVERAL potentially apocalyptic bits of knowledge I have rattling around in my head I’ve been doing a wonderful job of not bringing up right before entering Samudra, But. Sure. It was aimed at Jorule, not Annarr.”
untangles himself, finally, from Archie, though, looks up at Wolf and Salme. “…although, um, first. It was… you saw. An eye, and iridescent streamers?” A slow smile.
: “Yes?” With the air of a man who knows he’s answering a question of great weight, but a weight he cannot currently measure.
: “Correct.”
bites her lip. “Jorule, not Annarr. And not Aurelius.” Then she turns back to Caion.
grins that cracked, light-gets-in grin again. “Then that must -be- what they really look like.”
: “Yes…?” Somewhere between amused and bemused.
: “Nobody’s ever- you don’t -agree- on what a Polite Visitor looks like unless you’re Circled with someone who’s- there’s a trick, to dealing with them, what Archie and I did together. They… to most people, they look like… whatever you’re the most afraid of. Whatever your worst-ever nightmare was, whatever you can’t look at, and don’t want to think about.”
: “Hmm.” He clearly a moment to think of what it looked like to start, gives a little shiver, then shrugs it off. “Yes, that seems correct.”
: “And you learn to… look at them, and see something that’s -like- something you’re scared of, but… funny, instead. Like Archie did. And then I Circled with him, and broadcast that image within the Bubble.”
: “Ah, is that what happened? One wondered.” He gives a bit of a teasing smile to Archie. “Maw eels, eh?”
‘s mouth twists into something wry and humorless for a moment, but then the expression is gone. “But you’ve always wanted to know? What they really looked like?”
shudders slightly, but with a playful grin. It’s a weird combination of expressions.
looks right at Salme, and the grin is still there. The grin is -more-. And he takes a very steady, deep breath, and literally braces himself against Archie. “It’s what I see when I look at them, too.”
: “I thought I was the only one. I thought I was… insane, or broken.”
blinks, then smiles slowly, then chuckles, just a little, under his breath.
gives him a little squeeze. “Oh, you’re definitely a little something. But no. You were right. You’ve been right all along, just like you were right to believe in me.” His teasing smirk fades into a smile of pure sincerity.
doesn’t smile. There’s something in her expression. Not pity, not really, but concern. “Were you just gifted at seeing through them, or have you known so much sadness there was nothing terrible it could show you?”
blinks–no, frowns–at Salme, at that.
gives Caion a gentle, supportive squeeze and leans in.
looks up at Salme, meets her gaze- and there’s something very gentle in his eyes when he does so. “I don’t… know. I don’t have a good answer to that. I know… my life with Whisker-Clan has been good.” -he reaches out, and squeezes Archie’s arm. “But I also know that a Naiad almost never… washes up ashore, alone, as a child, on an unfamiliar strand.”
: “So I don’t…” He shrugs, lightly. And looks at -her- with some concern. Wonders, about her, about her Mask. “I don’t know why when I look at them I see what they are. I just… know I’m not the only one any more? That’s going to take some getting used to, I think.”
flushes. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. Bring up any sorrow. I’m glad. That you two have found each other again. And that your Clan had been such a home. And that our companion has found his way home to so much love.” She nods, decisively.
just…gently reaches out, and rests a hand on Salme’s shoulder for a moment. It doesn’t linger there, but…just a warm weight, and a slight squeeze.
: “…I’m very glad you’re all here. More than simply glad that you brought Archie back. And I’m…” -he glances around, again, some of the bright, vibrating energy escaping him, not unpleasantly, with a soft exhale. “Astounded at all of this. I want to study every inch of it. But probably not… right this moment.”
laughs gently. “You’ve always gotten on my case about resting up, now it’s my turn to return the favor. But the good news is… we have time, now.”
: “Indeed, we do.”
: “Sure, just let me know when you want to learn more.”
mumbles, as they’re all leaving the Library, “-see, I -always- want to learn more.”
rests his hands behind his head as he stares up and into the sun as the others leave; he’s going to stay in the library a bit longer, it seems.