Muttonhawk

Mid/High Casual - Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk.II

@BBeast Well, our version of fae creatures and weird shit essentially comes from Jvan. We may as well go to traditional roots with elves and say they're Jvanic as well, if they ever have a say in this universe. Then the mathematics canon loop will close!

Maybe human sculptors can be called elves by some cultures.

(If anyone makes Tolkien elves in this universe, or something too similar, I shall reach a state of permanent russlage of my jimmies)

EDIT: On the physics note, remember that Logos' physics may not be exactly the same as ours. Given that Zephyrion essentially blew entropy into the blueprint of the universe, I would say that Logos' physics is probably missing an angle or two that Zephy filled in. Like...I don't know, maybe everything is meant to be along a constant, unchanging value of time in Logos' rules.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Hahaha, 'probably' sounds like the operative word there.

I've got nothing really left on my list to play out today. Not unless Ahnasha gets super upset when Janius dobs Rhazii in. I know Fendros would just make sure he gave Jatinha the potions and maybe have a small chat with him about whether he had further feelings for you. Just general support. If Ahnasha is of the same mind, it probably won't matter enough to play it out.

I think my next item on my list is to play out whatever Meesei and Fendros' interactions are when Fendros gets his magical training good enough. Lorag mentioned a fight. That'll probably be a while off, though.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Rhazii's red eyes widened. "Uh, no aunt Kaleeth, we're fine." He forced a grin.

Janius didn't turn around. He murmured for only Kaleeth to hear when she looked ahead again. "I think Rhazii and that maid might have had a...an encounter while they were off in private. Perhaps we should let Ahnasha and Fendros know. They'll want to deal with it, I think." Janius kept a smile. Judging by what he had heard, Rhazii had probably approached it appropriately in terms of his lycanthropy.

---

"Do not rush, Lycan Queen," Lunise said softly. She was about done with a quick application of makeup, so she followed Meesei out and closed the door behind them. Before Meesei could ask any more, Lunise drew up her hood to obscure her salted and sanded hair, clasped her hands behind her back, and walked in the opposite direction of Meesei's heading.

When Meesei was partway down the hall, away from Lunise's chamber, she heard her voice echoing through. "You there, servant. Run and find your master. Tell him that the guest Justicar Lunise requests a hot bath and dinner for two in her chambers. I shall expect such in no less than an hour."

"Uh- y-yes ma'am!" A young voice stammered, before briskly stepping away. No doubt Lunise's hood, height, and authority had not changed since they had left.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Rhazii went back to frowning and slid his hands in his pockets. "Yeah," he answered, avoiding eye contact. "What of it?"

---

"I agree," Lunise said. She put her brush back and took out a small black stick, carefully tracing black around her eyes. "I doubt I could ask the count for a handmaiden to keep me warm, but...if any of them change their minds in the middle of the night, I would welcome them to stay."

Lunise did not respond to Meesei's reassurance of their privacy. Whether she was practising, paranoid, or simply being playful, there was no telling.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Dwelling on the subject was bad enough. When Julan threw himself into fright, Rhazii only got more anxious.

Rhazii threw up his hands. "Gods! Julan, I know!" Their whispers were getting louder than secret now. "Didn't aunt and uncle tell you to always bring two potions? I brought my two potions with me, okay? I am sure she is fine and your family will be, too." Rhazii hissed, annoyed. "Hircine's hounds, brother, it was just some fooling around. You don't need to get this worked up."

---

Lunise still overcompensated on remaining balanced when stepping through the portal, but she was getting more comfortable with the jaunts each time. After regaining her bearings and recognising her room, she let go of Meesei's hand.

"Ah, thank you," she said. Her professional demeanour had returned with jarring abruptness. "I expect Areldril will have enough written down by tomorrow morning that meeting with him will be beneficial." She walked over to a hand mirror she had set on a dresser and bent down to readjust her hair in it. "Not before a bath and some dinner. And getting the sand out of my uniform. Do inform me when he is ready to present his work."

Feeling eyes on her, Lunise turned her head around to where Meesei sat. She stared quietly with her neutral scowl, but her eyes seemed gentler. After a few seconds, she turned around to the mirror again. She took a leaf from a compact wooden wallet by the mirror and put it in her mouth while using a brush to apply some make up to her cheeks. "It will..." She hesitated. "It will be a cool night again tonight. I understand that the barracks linen is rather austere. I should thank the count for supplying me with a warmer bed."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Janius' response was to nod. He did so for several seconds, blinking back a glaze on his eyes. His brow knit and he took a quick breath. "After all this time..." He cleared his throat to try and keep his voice level. "After how they treated me when I was young, hearing it..." He raised his brow and smiled at Kaleeth. He was holding back tears that had been stored for a long time. "It's nice. It's a relief."

"Come on, we just..." Rhazii caught his tongue, flustered. He lowered his voice and craned his head down to mimic Julan's whisper. "We just talked, had lunch, and played a board game." He shot a glance at Julan. "And...kissed for a bit." He shot a hand up. "But-it-was-nothing-bad! Nothing that...you know, would infect her or anything. Look, please just don't tell mother and father?"

---

Still catching her breath, Lunise stood with her jaw dropped and her eyes focussed. Meesei's words brought a bright flush to her face and a quickness to her breath. Her heart thumped against Meesei's chest at a gallop.

"You talk too much." Lunise pressed her lips against Meesei's, inhaling a deep draft of her scent. It took considerable willpower for her to break the kiss. "We will be here all night if we do not return now." She closed her mouth and swallowed.

Lunise looked off to the side, where Meesei's neatly folded dress and shoes sat next to the scattered articles of Lunise's thrown uniform. "Here, I will help you," Lunise said, finally stepping away to pick up Meesei's clothing. Garment by garment, she dressed her. Lunise's words were spoken with sincerity, though the way Meesei was dressed held an air of care and affection. For those few minutes, the usual adversarial and acerbic side of Lunise was replaced by uncharacteristic nurture. She gave Meesei one last kiss on the neck and the side of the head before she saw to her own coverings.

Lunise cast small smiles to return Meesei's looks. "You owe me a set of undergarments," she mentioned while pulling on the first article.

Mid/High Casual - Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk.II

@Frettzo That's amazing in the purest root of the word.

Mid/High Casual - Divinus: The Deity Roleplay Mk.II

@Frettzo Wait, is it just me, or was that foliage and wood deliberately placed to obstruct the road? I can't tell whether it was that or whether it was washed into that position by rain or something.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"It was fortunate for sure," Janius agreed. "Well, heartless Imperial agent or no, it's good to know that you could stand up to someone like my father." He looked ahead. "I am still surprised that I was able to. But...so much has changed. He has changed, I have changed." Janius breathed in and sighed, casting his eyes down and lowering his voice. "I never thought I would live to hear either of them say they were proud of me." He squeezed Kaleeth's hand.

Julan had to sustain his look for a while. Rhazii caught it out of the corner of his eyes and double-took. "What are you looking at?" Rhazii stared back until his red eyes widened. "Oh, right, back there. Um..." Rhazii looked ahead and put his hands in his pockets. "What do you want to know?" He asked cautiously with a shrug.

---

Lunise hummed apprehensively at the thought of what Meesei implied. She did not have an answer by the time Meesei moved on.

"If there has been such a coupling before, it was kept just as closely a held secret as us," Lunise responded. "As for me...it is complex. I was raised in a society where Altmer were the superior mortal race. Being close to another race is debasing oneself. Stooping down to a primitive level. It is not unlike marrying an animal, to most Altmer." Lunise frowned. She was avoiding eye contact, though still spoke confidently. "The utilitarian reasons are simple; we do not grow our population fast, so to reproduce with a lesser race was to produce inferior children that would not have two parents over the majority of its lifetime, reducing the numbers of Altmer overall. But I am attracted to women -- I have known that since I started forming attraction to others -- so a birth child is practically infeasible. And like I said, I have accepted your limited lifespan even before you consider extending it. So that only left the shame."

She huffed from her nose. "There is no reason to lie. A part of me is still ashamed to be attracted to an Argonian. And yet, you were the one who was there for me, asking nothing in return. You are helping me come to terms with he biggest change of my life. You are talented enough to answer my challenges as a peer and not a barbarian. I would go as far to say I would be debasing myself by courting an average Altmer woman in comparison to you. Even if all of that was not justification enough, no one else is here to shame me."

Lunise cupped Meesei's cheek in her hand. "And before you let anyone think that, for a moment, I would resort to being with an Argonian because there are so few Altmer women that would reciprocate romance with another woman, know that you are a fitter specimen than the bulk of them. I adore the texture of your scales, the softness of your feathers, the shape of your figure, and your rich, exotic eyes." Her hand brushed up over Meesei's snout. "It was this that I found strangest," she said bluntly. "Your face. I think I had to kiss it before I could look past it. You should count yourself fortunate that, even after your long period of loneliness, you share exceptional kiss."

Once again, Lunise brushed her hand through Meesei's feathers. With her lips open, she placed her hand behind Meesei's head and drew her into a passionate kiss. Lunise held Meesei tighter as they continued. By now, they had enough practice with each other's lips that the differences in their faces were not a barrier to passion. Their hands wandered, pressing them further.

However, another thought made Lunise draw back early. "It occurs to me that the notion may have gone both ways." She laid her fingers on her cheek. "My face does not look...Argonian to you, does it? For an elf, that is?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Aurana laughed. "I look forward to it. Come back to visit any time, okay?"

"There there, Mother," Janius comforted Aeramina's emotional display. Even with his own feelings on leaving again, Aeramina let hers be known almost to the point of melodrama. "I'm sorry for all the trouble this has been," Janius continued. "I left without saying goodbye. That was wrong in the end, no matter how I felt at the time. I might be back, but...goodbye for now."

"You are forgiven, Janius," Remus said. "Goodbye."

"Goodbye, son," Aeramina finally stepped back. "We are proud of you. Of what you have become."

Janius pursed his lips and nodded. "Come, everyone." He addressed his packmates. "We should head back to the keep."

"Goodbye, Remus and Aeramina." Rhazii remembered to add. "Thank you for the meal."

He was given an acknowledging nod from Remus. "Farewell, all of you."

"Farewell," Aeramina repeated, dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief.

As Janius, Kaleeth, Rhazii, and Julan walked from the Aetius manor, the residents filed back indoors out of the cool air. Aurana remained outside to watch them with a smile.

The walk was quiet until they had lost sight of manor. Janius took Kaleeth's hand in his and gave her a smile. "Thank you, dearest. Thank you for your support. And for putting up with my parents." He raise an eyebrow. "You were very assertive back there. I liked that."

---

"The lycan queen without a mate for so long. I would not have predicted it." Lunise took Meesei's hand, eager to embrace her again with her arms around Meesei's shoulders.

"Naturally, I shall cure myself," Lunise acknowledged. "It is not the first time I have contracted the disease. The preliminary stages, that is. Not full lycanthropy."

Lunise's upper diaphragm twitched with a single, stillborn laugh. She stifled a smile. "No, what gave you away was your look of surprise when I did this earlier..." Lunise's hand drew over the side of Meesei's neck and charged with a simple restoration magic. Under Lunise's caress, Meesei's scales became unusually sensitive for several fading seconds. "I thought it was a pejorative stereotype that we Altmer use magic for everything. You are clever enough to know that, are you not?" She teased.