[RP] The Inn of Peace - IoP (Open to all)

[Astra_Senpai]

As she looked through, she began to hum 'Ring a Ring of Roses'. She didn't look up once, but they spoke of songs she'd never hear. She would backtrack a few times- finding similarities, looking for hidden things. There was... "Ma'evo'ence," to it, there was, "beau'y," in every line. She went back to humming.

Kiran's ears twitched as he spoke, listening and analyzing. He was boastful, not exactly a trait to be admired. Odd he'd seemed modest with Kyou. "Wh-what is the h-har-rm in t-tr-try-ying... I d-do n-not h-hav-ve m-much I c-could g-gi-iv-ve y-you f-for i-it." He glanced to Azana, listening to more than her tone- and then back to Tyler, "I c-could t-tr-trad-de y-you on-ne of m-my b-b-books."

Kyou piped in, "Or you could allow him to test and study your reactions if any."
Kiran looked at Kyou, the gaze was not unkind but held little affection. Kyou was in the rafters in a heartbeat, watching from above. Kiran looked to Tyler, smiled gently, "Or th-that. I sup-p-p-p-p-pose i-it w-woul-ld b-be f-fair."  

[Azana Brown]

The boast had been mostly in jest, Tyler knowing that most were accustomed to his skills and creations by now. Honestly, he wondered where James got the extra swagger from...perhaps the idea of having an intellectual rival? It hardly mattered. He didn't need to flaunt; JIM and his other achievements did the talking for him. It was just fun to fake it sometimes.

"My point exactly," he nodded, tilting his head with a light shrug. "I don't need much; either of those would work." With a turn back to his laptop, he typed a quick E-mail to the Labs. "It'll probably be here in a day or two. They're usually pretty fast, but with Halloween they might be swamped."

Azana bristled at hearing the word. Yes, it was a reality she had been aware of for a while, but it conjured up all the disasters from years before, including the one that brought her to meet all these people.

Violet couldn't deny that. Kasdeya was beautiful, with a perfect figure, a winning smile, and an aura of complete authority. It was the inside that was rotten. There were very few drawings involving Violet herself, but many of the others were people she had at least seen...others she had met, gotten to know, only to watch them waste away.

Somewhere in the middle of it all was an odd, almost out-of-place picture of a cheerful imp.

"Incredibly," Marilyn answered, trying to lure him out of the back row. "It is an idea that even if one has done wrong, they can still be saved. There is always forgiveness for those who sincerely seek it." She paused, looking to Charlotte and, to her surprise, her missing rosary.

"This is...! Oh, thank you..." She took the strand from her, gently dusting away the ashes and feeling the comforting weight of the prayer beads.

"...now it's truly finished," Orrin grinned, lightly dusting off a black hat in his pocket. Nirro had grown attached to the look, and Charlotte seemed to enjoy it, so the hat would stay.  

[Gren_Eckener]

Charlotte tittered, bouncing back to her sweetheart and kissing his cheek. "Mischief managed~. Plans for today?"

At the notion that forgiveness could be granted to anyone who truly sought it, Malachai smiled ruefully, perking up at the necklace. "Say! A rosary, that's nice...was it yours?"  

[Azana Brown]

"Spend it with you?" He offered sweetly. "Perhaps not as mayhem-filled as last time, but I promise it'll be enjoyable."

"Yes!" She answered, dusting off the crucifix carefully before draping it around her neck. "It was stolen from me...I never thought it would come back."  

[Gren_Eckener]

"Yes please and thank you; I would love to spend the day cherishing you in all ways possible." she said amiably.

Malachai smiled brightly. "That's so lucky! I guess He's really looking out for you right now!"  

[Azana Brown]

"Now there's a word I don't hear enough of," he said, arm around her. "Cherish. It has a lovely ring, and yet it's so rare. But that's beside the point. I've heard it's unseasonably warm out today; shall we 'cherish' that while it's among us?"

"The small blessings are sometimes the greatest," she answered, jumping to the back. "King me."  

[Gren_Eckener]

"Of course, my darling. Let us make a picnic lunch and view the falling leaves!" she cheered, pecking his cheek.

He crowned her piece, pouting. "Man..."  

[Astra_Senpai]

Honey hummed, looking up, "The lit'le 'mp is i' a re' 'errin'?"

Kiran nodded, "Wh-what c-coul-ld it h-hurt..." He perked slightly, "Y-you h-hav-ve all b-been a t-tw-twit-t-ter ab-bout H-Hal-low-ween. I-is i-it a b-b-big ev-ven-nt h-here?"

Tamriel seethed, jerking awake. Uncurling from where she lay, sitting up she looked around the darkness of her room. Her ears drooped, tears welled as she realized she was alone. Wrapping her tail around herself and burying into it, she cried softly.

Kyou hovered over Malachai and the woman. The game they were playing looked like a much larger version of othello.  

[Azana Brown]

"A ray of hope, actually," Violet answered, a soft smile for that infernal ball of sunshine. "His name is Hemlock...he is a sweet little imp, definitely not made for tormenting. He...he helped me, on the sly, and is part of the reason I'm still here."

Azana scowled. "You could say that," she answered, voice clearly loathing the subject. "There's no solid explanation why, but strange things occur around Halloween in these parts. Large scale...combat's often involved. And since they're metaphysical in nature, you can usually count on the GMO to be called in."

"In short, she's very, very busy this time of year and hates it," Tyler summed it up, back to programming. "If you've noticed the barren plains not far from here, that's where one of them took place. It still hasn't healed fully."

"Don't worry about it...I'm sure you'll get one before we're done," Marilyn grinned before inwardly kicking herself. Was she encouraging him? That was awkward, but he was truly earnest about learning the game. It was endearing, even if he was a spawn of evil.

Orrin emerged from the kitchen with a picnic basket and a decent idea for where a good blanket was. "Just viewing them...? I figured you'd like to get a little closer."  

[Gren_Eckener]

"Closer?" she hummed, tilting her head. "Like knocking them down?"

"Really?" he smiled, making his move. "I've never gotten one before; do you really mean it?"  

[Azana Brown]

Orrin chuckled, shaking his head as he pat her shoulder lightly. "They fall in their own time...but we can have plenty of fun with those who have already landed. Either way, they wait for us."

"Sure!" Marilyn smiled. "Though you'll have to get at least one of my back squares open, first." She kept her king nice and safe on his far end, sliding another piece forward. She couldn't just let him have the king...after all, she was supposed to win this game.  

[Gren_Eckener]

Charlotte tittered, taking up the basket. "C'mon...let's go make leaf-angels." she said, tossing her head.

"See, that's never happened, because I always lose all of my bits before I get that far." said Mal, taking a piece. "It's hard to play this game."  

[Astra_Senpai]

"I h-h-hav-ve n-not. I d-d-do n-not v-v-vent-tur-re out-tsid-de of-ft-ten." A shiver passed through Kiran at Azana's tone, the small red tufts bristling slightly at it. That was a great deal of dislike, enough to make her heartbeat quicken in annoyance. They did not celebrate All Hallow's at home in the same manner. "G-G-G-M-M-M-O?"

Kyou asked from above, watching contently, "What is this Halloween? Is it too a marvel? You said it must be fought. It is responsible for the barren land? The mushi there are vicious. What is the letter that looks like a bird beak?"

Honey smiled, "Ah so i's no' a me'ap'or. 'E s'ands ou' a bi'- bu' o'ly a sma'l bi'. Ya wor' is beau... wai' a ti'k- t'is is no' jus' fro' ya imag'na'ion?" Her baby blues shimmered at the prospect of these images being real. What an interesting... truly? "Ya ta'ing a pi's, Lo'e? I Ad'maEv' 'ou bu' Lord abo'e... all t'is 'ou li'ed t'rough? 'Ou mus' be one a the s'ronges' peo'le 'ere," she exclaimed, smiled broad.  

[Azana Brown]

Azana stopped for a moment. Right. Not everyone was properly introduced before. "Gaian Metaphysical Organization," she spelled out the whole thing, not used to rattling it off anymore. "I work for them, as do a few people in the room. Sol, Tyler...my cousin Stella runs it right now. We do our best to identify and educate Talented Gaians to keep incidents to a minimum, and do what we can to resolve metaphysical incidents. Over recent years, we've noticed the pattern of large-scale mayhem around Halloween to the point where we expect it."

"It's a holiday, actually," Tyler looked up to Kyou, leaning back slightly in the chair. "A long time ago, it was a harvest festival that marked the start of winter, but they also came to recognize the spiritual connotations of the day, as well. These days, people celebrate by dressing in costumes, and children gather candy from their neighbors. In addition to those traditions, there always seems to be a fight breaking out in Gaia around that time."

He paused, looking through the letters to try and see a bird beak. "...I'm not sure which one you mean. Point to it, perhaps?"

Violet froze, clearly having said to much. "N-not all of it...!" She immediately backtracked, shaking her head. "I...I don't draw a lot of what happened to me...but I-I did see most of this in person..." Honey said she was strong...Kiran told her to be proud...but it was so hard to feel that way.

"But Charlotte, how would I fashion wings out of them?" He asked, winking as he held open the door.

"You'll pick it up," Marilyn said, pointing to her back row. "They can't go backwards, so once you get them out, they stay out. You could either jump a lot of my pieces to force me to use these, or lure me into putting them out." She made her move, king still safely in his backfield.  

[Gren_Eckener]

"Tape together the leaves that you catch from falling together, so that they never know that ground. Wings!" she smiled, leading the way out.

Malachai liked the idea of luring and tried just that, hoping she didn't call his bluff.