Open September Logs

[ask_whydunit]

Who; Waver & Anyone
What; 2 Open Logs
Where; Market & Fountain (memory)
When; Late September I guess
Warnings; For the fountain memory: Severe Injury & allusions to possible death


A. Market – OTA

Several people had been on his case (justifiably even if he wouldn’t admit it) to get out more. Not that last month had made it that easy to acquiesce to that suggestion… Waver had exerted himself a little too much over everything. Between the damned beast and the other situations, he’d gotten involved with (even if he’d been warned not to). His overused circuits ached, and the rest of his body had done what it did every time a case got a little too out of hand and he’d pushed himself until it was over. It stopped him by way of getting sick and he’d had to hide away while he tried to recover from it.

So there was at least a reason for returning to the hermit life.

At least until that day, as he opened his fridge and realized with disappointment that he was once again out of bread and other assorted sandwich making ingredients… Not to mention he needed to pick up some things for the workshop before he went there later to check in on the state of his current subject of interest. The mystery seed that definitely did not appear to be normal by any stretch. He’d been cautious, studied it a bit, then set up a carefully controlled environment to contain it and see how it grew. Giving Waver items of a magical nature was like giving a kid a toy at Christmas. He was going to be curious, and he was going to study the hell out of it.

So, between the need for easy to make food stuff and materials for his workshop, he found him in the open air market. Strolling between stalls with a bag over his shoulder to carry what he needed. The mage mumbled to himself as he ticked off each item on his mental list, “Tomatoes… Lettuce… Eggs… Bread. Right, I need bread.” He sighed, turning to move away from his current path and on towards the bakery. “Maybe I’ll stop at the tavern for lunch-” Waver started to muse to himself as he noted the time of day, only to stop with a startled sound as he almost walked right into someone, the bag on his shoulder slipping off when he started to drop to the ground with an audible sound of something breaking (RIP eggs). "What the- You startled me!"

Obviously...

Smooth, Velvet.


B. Fountain Memory – OTA

Waver sat on the edge of the fountain later that day as he fussed with his lighter that was being difficult, despite him being certain he just filled the damn thing. It was just meant to be a short pause to light his cigar before starting the walk to his workshop. He planned to check on the mystery planting project he’d set up in a small, controlled environment placed next to a window, maybe nap on the sofa and hope that nothing exploded for a few days.

Idly the mage glanced at the fountain as he seriously considered giving up on the lighter and conjuring a little flame to be done with it, but that was a waste of mana in his opinion when a lighter should be doing the job just fine. The little gold object slipped free of his grip though and clinked audibly on the ground as something caught his eye in the reflection of the still waters…

And when the memory played to the end, a muttered curse left his mouth and his shoulders shook lightly in annoyance. “Shit.” He did not, in fact, need the bloody reminder of what happened just before he suddenly found himself in this stupid city over a year ago now… Especially when he’d had to practice the art of dodging the obvious around people who were starting to notice his avoidance of certain subjects and questions.

It was then that he noticed he wasn’t alone, feeling a presence standing near enough that the fountain had probably been in full view. His head swivelled and his gaze was sharp as he glanced at them uncomfortably. “Can I help you with something or are you just going to stand there gawking?”

Oof... Have fun with that.

Comments

I

[skyward_eyes]

Good news, Nida wasn't the one almost walked into, so this wasn't his fault. Bad news, he actually felt bad about the guy. The guard pulled away from the stall owner he was talking to and moved to meet the mage.

"Hey there. Do you need some help?"

If nothing else, with his water magic he would be able to wash the egg gunk off of things.

[ask_whydunit]

Waver was counting to ten in his head as the person who he’d nearly collided with took their leave rather quickly. What was with his luck sometimes? he mused as he crouched to retrieve his bag. He didn’t expect anyone to help, either, let alone someone who hadn’t been involved in the near collision in the first place. So he was a little surprised when Nida approached.

Hm… One of the city guards? A little outside their realm of duties, he thought. But the mage shrugged tiredly at the question. “Don’t suppose you know how to put an egg back together.” He commented wryly, nose wrinkling as he pulled his tomatoes out of the bag. They were definitely covered in egg yolk. Yuck…

[skyward_eyes]

"Sorry. Entropy is beyond even my magic to counter," Nida admits with a small shrug. "But..."

He reaches to Siren, shunting Carbuncle aside for now. The little protective spirit does get annoyed by this but Nida doesn't mind, because she's better with water. He curls the spell in his hands, creating and struggling to hold a simple orb of water between his hands.

"Here. Just... pass whatever's dirty through this and it should get them clean enough until you get home."

[ask_whydunit]

“Some things can’t be helped, even by magic.” He mused wryly, studying the mess inside his bag for a moment.

Waver felt a mixture of surprise, curiosity, and the small usual burst of envy at the sight of the spell Nida conjured up. It’s nothing against Nida. The mage just always found himself acutely aware of what he lacked when faced with someone else’s abilities. Conjuring up a similar spell and maintaining it like Nida was would have taken far more focus and drained him more than most mages.

He pushed the thought aside though, complaining got him nowhere, and it saved him from washing everything off in the sink back at the apartment. “Ah... Thank you, that would help.” He handed the tomatoes over, and pulled out a head of lettuce next, waiting for Nida to finish with the tomatoes before offering it.

Absently, he was glad he didn’t get the bread already.

[skyward_eyes]

That was exceedingly true. But for now Nida was doing his best, maintaining his focus on holding the water in place so that Waver can wash things.

"Siren likes it when I practice with water lately," Nida says honestly. It helped strengthen his bond with her, which made her slightly less angry with Carbuncle.

Slightly.

[ask_whydunit]

The mage considered what to do as the tomatoes were rinsed off, no point in putting them back in the goopy egg mess in the bag. So he unfolded his scarf from his neck and set it down in a free space to rest the produce on once it was clean. He could figure out what to do after that.

Moving on to the lettuce, he glanced at Nida again. “Siren?” He asked both conversationally and curiously, since they were occupied for the moment.

[skyward_eyes]

"Magic where I'm from is a matter of bonding to powerful spirits called Guardian Forces. And using magics they are aligned with makes your bond to them more powerful."

And since he was already water and wind aligned it was easy to connect to her. Carbuncle didn't approve of it of course, he was a defensive spirit.

[ask_whydunit]

That gets a curious rise in his brow. It was always interesting to hear how magic worked in other worlds. There were sometimes similarities, but they were never quite the same. Forgive him, Nida, if he has questions. “I see, so when you refer to Siren, you were referring to that particular spirit.” Finishing the head of lettuce, he pulled out the last few things, mostly fruit for snacks.

“Some mages where I’m from do call upon elemental spirits for their familiars… And then there are those versed in forms of spiritual possession.” He mused, before continuing. “So, using the kind of elements she’s associated with strengthens the bond between you. I take it that she has certain abilities and talents beyond the norm that assists you?”

[skyward_eyes]

"Yes," he agrees with a nod. "A spirit of the winds and seas, and of music. And using her elements brings us closer, just as using fire would bind me more to Ifrit, or ice to Shiva."

As for the talents... He smiles. Yes, one could say that.

"She enhances my hearing, among granting me magic at all. It's a form symbiosis."

B. Fountain Memory

[moonlitrequiem]

Yin knows that voice. As she's been at the fountain for a while, it doesn't show anything for her, at the moment, though her vision might repeat, later. For now, one hand in the fountain, her specter turns to look right at Waver, in a way Yin herself can't seem to. It definitely meet's Waver's eyes.

When it looks right at him, Yin's eyes finally meet his. This is what Waver looks like. She associates the voice to his appearance.

But right, he seems agitated and asked a question, Yin intends to answer as best as she can.

Yin tilts her head and softly says, slowly, "I was putting your appearance to memory."

She looks down where the memory had played out. Yin is also still processing that.

[ask_whydunit]

It takes Waver a moment or two to process what he’s seeing. If only because his emotions tended to go from a calm zero to an irritated extreme of sixty in what seemed like no time at all when something threw him off. It usually resulted in some lingering embarrassment after the fact, especially when someone who didn’t deserve to deal with that had been in the line of fire (people who pushed his buttons on purpose less so). Yin definitely didn’t need the professor scowling at her for her first view; it wasn’t like she’d even done anything.

It was just… Very poor timing.

But that was how things usually went.

Taking a breath, his eyes fell on the spirit in the water and definitely realizing its gaze was meeting his eyes and the wheels ever turning in his head didn’t take long to put the pieces together. Yin’s ability that she’d partially displayed that night a while back. This was how she saw. She confirmed as much as she spoke. “Ah… Right. That makes sense.” He deflated slightly, reached down to scoop up the lighter he’d dropped. Hair curtaining his face to piece together a less awkward expression as he straightened. “Startled me, is all.”

He finally eyed the spirit again properly. “So this is what you used that night.” Waver was, obviously, going to use it as a distraction from the rest of this.

[moonlitrequiem]

At least the poor timing doesn't throw Yin off. She's used to this sort of reaction. It reminds her, heavily, of Hei. Of home. It feels familiar and solidifies her interest in Waver. She connects his mood to the scene that played out not that long ago. Something about it either agitates him, or is a thing he wishes to not touch. For now, she just notes that.

The spirit wobbles a little up and down still curiously peering at Waver as his hair falls to hide his face.

"Yes," she informs Waver honestly.

"I was exploring the city."

[ask_whydunit]

It is a safe bet to presume the answer is ‘both’ on the subject of him being agitated or not wanting to touch the subject. The opening to focus instead on Yin and her little spirit was an easy one for the mage to latch onto, both because it was interesting and because it took the focus off himself for now.

When he straightened, he had managed a slightly more neutral expression, even if there was some awkwardness lingering around the eyes and in his tone as he focused on the small spirit wobbling in the water. A brow raised slightly as he almost got the impression that it was curious, but perhaps that was some curiosity from Yin herself, given this was her first time seeing him. “Interesting. Something so small would blend in rather easily. Some might not even notice it at all if they weren’t paying attention to the water.” Which it kind of had before he realized Yin was even there. Leaning slightly, he got a better look at it. “Is it more of a construct that you connect your senses to, or does it have any sentience of its own?”

Glancing up again, he offered a small nod. “It’s good to familiarize yourself with it, though I’ve heard the layout changes at times. What do you make of it so far?” That was to say, he wondered in his own way if she was settling in okay.

[moonlitrequiem]

Yin isn't the type to consider pursuing a closed door, but perhaps at some point they should return to that vision. Her curiosity bubbles. They are small bubbles, but they are there. For now, she is content to entertain Waver's questions.

Unbeknownst to her, the future of her specter is to gain its own sentience, but for now, at least, the answer is, "Construct," as it is the closest to what it is. She isn't entirely sure how they work, but they connect to the Dolls that create them, and hers is definitely connected to her.

Yin's eyes open, slightly, and she tilts her head. "How does it change?" Most cities don't do that, she hopes. Even when their changed back home, it was just the sky, other than the Hellgates.

As for her thoughts of the place, Yin isn't entirely sure. She is still understanding that side of her. One thing she does know, as she's not on missions, "It seems more still than home."

With her tone so vacant, it might be hard to tell if that's a good thing or a bad thing. To Yin, it's just a fact.

[ask_whydunit]

Waver nods, a construct then… Still was odd to watch it, getting the sense of some kind of emotion from a small water being… but for now he would chalk it up to his own mind imposing the sense of emotion to a small being and perhaps some of Yin’s own curiosity and personality bleeding through.

He was going to ask another question, but Yin’s gets priority given she was new and the whole matter could be… jarring. And given Yin was only just familiarizing herself with this place, it was important to note.

“Sometimes everyone will wake up and there will be some area that wasn’t there the day before, or a building suddenly existed where before there were other things.” He frowned a little, shaking his head. “People, the locals that is, act as though the location was always here.” The mage had thoughts about that, but not enough evidence to say for sure. “The academy I’ve been helping around, that’s one of them.” He fussed with the lighter a bit, finally getting a flame out of it enough to light his cigar. “And it’s an interesting case, compared to some of the other locations. We have confirmation that it existed in a space outside of this one after the cataclysmic event that apparently caused all this. It and some other things, I expect… But it apparently did belong here all along.” So it was at least another piece of the puzzle.

Yin’s opinion of what she thought so far gets a small hum. Sometimes the place was very still… people could almost get used to it. Waver just had the misfortune of walking from one weird situation to another since he got here, not unlike in his world. “Used to more excitement where you’re from, are you?”

[moonlitrequiem]

The specter bobs up and down, seemingly looking in Waver's direction with those dead, black eyes, never leaving him, endlessly curious.

Hopefully, Waver remembers his question. Asking Yin questions opens her mind a little more, helps her think for herself.

Yin doesn't quite frown, her lips don't move, but there's a resignation to her posture in hearing about this. She will need to take precautions. Carry water with her, perhaps, just in case.

The last bit gets a soft, "Yes," from her, without a lot of explanation. But when one works with assassins and is always on the run, it is easy to get accustomed to the constant bustle and excitement.

[ask_whydunit]

The little spirit’s eyes on him are definitely distracting him now and again, eyes returning to it as he returned its curious looks with one of his own. It was fascinating, really, both in what it did and for the assistance its presence provided Yin with. “Are there any conditions beyond needing access to water to use it? Like does it have to be freshwater, or would it work on saltwater as well?”

He would approve of her idea of carrying water with her, though. One should be prepared for the unexpected in this place, because there didn’t seem to be a pattern or a method with which to anticipate something happening. At least not yet, not that he’d found. So taking precautions for the potential shift in the layout of things was a good idea when she needed to rely on the spirit to see the area and work out which way to go… Especially if she found herself alone.

Her soft, but brief yes gets a small hum. It’s an explanation that lacks details, and just serves to further his own curiosity. Over the years he’d noted that sometimes saying little conveys more than one thinks, and other times saying a lot leaves much to be desired when it comes to other people. “Not sure what kind of excitement you’re used to… But I don’t doubt you’ll find some here before long. Just be careful. Usually when things go wrong, they tend towards going absurdly wrong.”

[moonlitrequiem]

"Any water," Yin assures Waver. That is one good thing about it, at least. The water can be muddy, not every clear itself, as long as it's water, it works. And it can be either her hands or her feet, too. Which is also useful.

It sounds like this place is good at providing the unexpected. Yin isn't accustomed to needing to worry about that, but without a team here to back her up? Best to be better prepared.

She is quiet for a moment, then has to ask, "Has a lot happened to you here?" because that's truly the first thing that comes to her mind hearing things happen in this place.

B

[soulsword]

It seemed that Illyana had perfect timing for coming upon Waver when he probably least wanted to see her. The reasons she happened to be passing by the fountain at the exact moment it was playing his memory were pure coincidence. Or perhaps, if one wanted to be more cynical, it was the universe playing a trick on him. She'd been on the other side of the fountain when it started and she'd honestly gotten caught up in the memory, it was almost like watching a movie. A movie with an actor you were familiar with.

He really did lead a life that would almost fit right in with the X-Men.

Of course, once he'd finally noticed her (and she'd finally noticed him) she tilted her head and then gave a small smirk. "I think I'll just keep gawking for a bit." She really couldn't help herself. "At least there's less chance of everyone seeing it if it's playing in a movie fountain." Was that her vague attempt at trying to make him feel better? Maybe.

"Did you ever find out who she was?" Of course she was going to ask questions and not just pretend she hadn't seen anything.

[ask_whydunit]

Given Waver’s penchant for complaining and cynicism, his opinion of what just happened weighed heavily upon the universe playing a particularly rude trick on him. Didn’t seem to matter which world he was in, if something could go wrong it would.

Her comment gets a rather unimpressed glare across the fountain, shoulders still shaking lightly as though he were a volcano just this close to erupting He should know her well enough by now to have expected the reply before he even opened his mouth, but Waver’s emotions always got the better of him, always went from a calm zero to an over the top 60 in so little time that it ensured a reaction before he could stop himself. “Do you really have that much bloody free time to waste?” Of course she did. Everyone did in a place like this.

It didn’t help that he felt awkward right now. His frown stretched impressively across his face, turning his eyes to glower down at the waters below that had begun to ripple and dissipate any lingering images when he activated his circuits to stir up a small breeze. If he had more power, he wistfully noted, he could have caused a gale that might deter further conversation… “I’d rather this world not take it upon itself to share personal shit in general.”

It was at least a small comfort that it wasn’t a public phone network message this time. But a fat lot of good the change did when one of the people he didn’t want to see it most happened to be present in the first place. He’d lied to her at least once, maybe twice, in the last month alone about this, considering he’d told her his ‘plans’ had kept him alive this long when it came to dealing with trouble. Now it was fairly obvious that might not be the case.

“Considering I’ve been here since then? No… I’ve only got an unconfirmed theory at best.” He offered back, finally stooping to scoop up the lighter he’d dropped. The topic of the woman in the chariot was at least an easier topic to focus on, one that he’d gladly take over the ‘elephant in the room.’

[soulsword]

"I don't consider this wasting my time. In fact," she sat down dramatically on the edge of the fountain and folded one leg over the other. "I like to think of this as my job, so it's really not free time." It wasn't like she'd ever actually picked up something like a job here. If anyone ever asked how she got money, well, she'd have an explanation for that but it might not be the one someone would want. It paid to be able to use magic like she could. And to have imps.

But, basically, her job was teasing the people around her, mostly him (he should feel special).

"Who wouldn't rather that? But we don't get to choose it," she said with an overly nonchalant shrug. She'd be just as annoyed in his position, but luckily she wasn't in his position at the moment. Which meant she could act as indifferent as she wanted to about it.

"What's the theory?"

[ask_whydunit]

Waver’s frown deepened as she sat down and clearly settled in for a proper chat. Was his blood pressure rising slightly as she responded? Yes. But if anything, her teasing helped ease some of the awkwardness. Sure, it was replaced by obvious annoyance at her antics but that was still somewhat better…? Maybe…?

“Your job-“ He rolled his eyes with a grumble and fussed with trying to get the lighter working again. “Then you clearly need a vacation.” He ended in a slightly deadpan tone, because she clearly spent too much time working (teasing).

That was part of why this was all so annoying, honestly. They didn’t get a choice on the whole ‘their lives being shown like a stupid movie for other people’s entertainment.’ They didn’t even get to have a say in what was shown! Couldn’t it at least be something stupidly insignificant that would be easier to talk about? Finally, he gave up the lighter, barely keeping himself from chucking it across the courtyard and sticking it in a pocket instead. He brought a hand up to conjure a small spark of flame to light the end, because Waver didn’t think he’d get through this conversation without a smoke.

“Does it matter what the theory is if I can’t confirm it?” The professor responded with a tired shrug, blowing out a cloud of smoke in the opposite direction of them. Of course it mattered, at least enough that he spent as much time thinking about the encounter as he did.

Still, better this than other things, perhaps. “A body double for the king. His shadow… Their physical appearance fits some of the legends describing what he looked like. Small frame, dark black hair, heterochromia with one eye embracing the blue of the sky and the other the shadows of the night… I think she may be a residual image; a magical body double meant to protect him and confuse potential threats by being such a contrast to his actual appearance. But without confronting her again, I can’t say for sure…” Nor could he be satisfied with the theory without confirming it or a few other lingering details.

[soulsword]

"I don't believe in vacations, they're boring." Besides, the rest of this place was boring enough that it was like a vacation all in it's own. "There's only one person here that needs vacations." Spoiler: she thought it was him.

"You know, they say those things can kill you." She tilted her head and just kept grinning that smug little grin of hers. Something told her he didn't really care about that aspect of things, but hey, she wasn't above picking on anything to tease him about.

"Guess not," she shrugged. It may not have mattered, but that didn't mean she wasn't curious. "It matters to you though." Illyana wasn't usually an exceptionally observant person when it came to the feelings of others, but if he was this loathe to talk about it, then it had to bother him in some way, right?

"Hmm, a body double that doesn't like you much?"

[ask_whydunit]

“For you, maybe.” Listen, Illyana, he’s not saying he would enjoy the break if she did take a vacation… But he absolutely would enjoy the break. Though, on that note, as she continued, he rolled his eyes. “I do take them.” No, Waver did not. He took sick leave after cases wrecked him. That wasn’t the same… But agreeing felt a little too much like letting Illyana win and have the satisfaction of being right. Grown adult as he was, he could still be a petty child at times.

And he definitely dug his heels in more as she found the next thing to tease him about. Brow twitching just slightly, he lowered the cigar and gave her a look. “Wow, that’s new information that I’ve never heard before.” His tone was slightly deadpan as he responded, sarcasm evident.

Having her point out that the mystery of who that woman was did matter to him gets a small, uncertain frown and an uncomfortable hunch to his posture. Waver was never good about talking about what mattered to him. Personal shit was always a minefield. It was easy to pull apart cases and expand on incidents that hadn’t been tied to something personal, but crossing that line always left him feeling off balance. “Yeah… Guess so.” He huffed, rolling the cigar between his fingers and decidedly not looking at Illyana.

“That’s a mild way of putting it.” He responded with a frustrated sigh. Whatever her motivations were, she’d clearly weighed and judged Waver on sight, and found herself ultimately offended by his very existence. He couldn’t blame her. The mage knew he wasn’t much to speak of compared to most the other retainers of legend, but her reaction to him had been… pretty volatile almost immediately. Between that and the fact he’d never seen her before? That just added a whole layer to the puzzle that was going to drive him crazy till he figured it out.

[soulsword]

"Oh? You do, do you? What kind? Do you go on Grand Caribbean cruises? Or are you more the Disney type?" She tilted her head with that overly exaggerated curious look on her face. It was that way that mimicked a certain amount of innocence, but he probably was all too familiar with that look by now. "No, definitely not a Disney guy." She was definitely leaning more towards him never having taken an actual fun vacation in his life, but she'd be polite (for once) and not just say that.

"That's shocking! I'm glad I could give you some new information though," she said with a grin that she didn't even try to hide. Why would she try to hide it? That was part of her fun after all and Illyana did enjoy her fun; which was something she'd be all too willing to admit without hesitation if asked about it.

"What was that? You guess so?" She prodded him keeping up that prickly smile. "Strange that she'd judge you so harshly. Maybe she really hates smokers." Look, she knew how utterly ridiculous that was to say, but she honestly wasn't entirely certain what to say. It clearly bothered him to some extent, though she wasn't entirely certain how badly. Reading people in a way like that was not, and never could be, her strong suit. "At least it wasn't too bad of a memory to share with others."