melodiesofkupo | [Video]

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[It’s a sunny, cheerful morning when Azusa greets the network with a smile.]

Ufufu~. Some work was suddenly called off, so surprisingly I’m free for an entire week. There’s no ghosts, no exploration, and no kidnappings for me to deal with.

[She pauses, blinks.]

My, when was the last time I was able to do so much? I’m not even sure what to do with my break...and to think, I was so happy to get time off that I just started talking to everyone without a clear direction in mind.

[Ara, ara.]

Ah, I know~. I still should earn some money this week, right? I’m well-respected in the Astrologian’s guild these days, and they’ve been teaching me all sorts of ways to tell accurate fortunes. Would anyone be interested in that? I can tell you all about how lucky you’ll be in love, or your future in romance, or what the stars say about your crush...or other things. Or you can just stop by to have tea and cake with me in between clients. How does that sound?

[She places her hand to her cheek.]

Please tell me you’ll come visit me~.

[ooc; Because of all the player plots, this takes place sometime after the second and sometime before the third and fourth one, but the laws of time and space might be bent a little. It's okay, we'll be flexible.]

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I might have a bottle or two stashed away I've been waiting to open.

[If anything, she sounds a little too eager to drink on the job??? But it's not like she's operating heavy machinery or doing hero work. It's fine! It's fine.]

Want me to bring anything over? I can get some food or something, yeah? Or more booze.

[There’s no shame in drinking on the job! Maybe it makes them more accurate.]

Either would be nice, but your company is appreciated most of all. Ah, maybe you could bring a fruitcake...?

[Look at her, isn't she hilarious?]

I think we want it to be a pleasant evening, Azusa. Not one we break our teeth on, yeah?

[Still, he chuckles. It's pretty funny.]

Right, right. Maybe I'll introduce you to a pavlova sometime...but that's a little too fancy for a fortune-telling. Why don't you text me when you're in Cloud City and I'll make sure to have everything ready for you to stop by?

Pavlova? I don't know what it is, but I'm all for it, yeah? I'll do just that, though.

[And indeed, Vax does do that. It's a few days later ~~because time is wobbly due to player plots the exact number is more like an interpretive dance than an integer~~ but, the next time a message brings him to Cloud City, he texts ahead of time and keeps some time clear.]

Oi, Azusa. I'm in Cloud City. Good for that reading?

It's a type of fruitcake that won't hurt anyone. I had some once when I boarded the wrong airship and ended up on a different continent back home.

[She doesn't even realize that her story is a little terrifying or that she used the word 'airship' instead of airplane.

But! Moving forward a few days, freezing time for a few hours, stepping back a day, making one day longer, making two days shorter, and then finally finding time for this meeting to happen, Azusa receives the text. She tells him that she's able to receive him and where to head.

When he arrives, the Astrologians will guide him to a side room Azusa's reserved for the week. When he enters, he'll find she has a desk with star charts, a crystal ball, Tarot cards, tea leaves, all sorts of other miscellany, and...snacks! The booze is hidden away, of course. There's a couch, chairs. She's got a pretty cozy life going on, considering she appears to be reading a fashion magazine.]

Really? Wimples are so out they're in? I can't believe that... [Munch, munch... ... ...] Ah! You're here! Come in, come in.

[...Vax files that away under the "things to keep an eye on Azusa for." Making sure she doesn't board the wrong airship and go to a different continent.

He follows instructions well and shows up on time; he's learned to get around Vaikuntha, being a mail delivery person. Someone has to. He also pulls the newsboy cap he wears on the job off, and takes it in his bag, before he gets ushered in. He steps inside, peering around for a moment.]

You've done well for yourself, yeah? This is a nice place.

[He walks in, head tilted. What's a Wimple? He steps up to the desk, and his eyes are briefly on the crystal ball. Then, on the star charts. And then the snacks.]

Thanks, Azusa. This all looks fantastic.

My, my. Thank you, Vax’ildan. Most of these tools belong to the guild, but I'm glad they let me use them.

[She doesn't own nearly as much of these things as she'd like to. While she's up, she starts humming to herself a little. It's a song from one of her idol days back on Earth, but the song doesn't matter nearly as much as the fact that she's pulling out a bottle of some expensive-looking rum from one of the desk drawers.

She said she'd deliver. And she loves drinking with friends.]

I'm glad you could make it. I've been wondering all this time what sort of fortune you've been wanting me to divine, but it's also been so many months since I could have a nice drink at work.

['At work.']

[Vax cracks a smile, before he nods.] Yeah, makes sense to me.

[He's here to drink with a friend. Really, that's the main reason -- but he does believe in fortune telling, divining, and fate. It's too big a part of his life to ignore. He sits down in a chair.]

Well... there's a couple of things I wouldn't mind knowing about. What sort of method do you use, to tell fortunes?

[He glances at the rum, then cracks another smile. Far be it from him to judge for drinking on the job.]

[She hums again as she pulls out two glasses and starts to pour. She doesn't have ice, but we'll say this is the kind of rum that's good at room temperature. It has a coconut aftertaste, too. Very pirate-y!]

Let's see...back home, I really enjoyed telling Tarot fortunes and reading palms. But the Guild has been teaching me other things, too, from how to read star charts and tea leaves to how to use crystal balls...

[Her voice trails off a little as she finishes gesturing from each item to each item. She has a traditional Tarot deck, from her world, and the deck she uses in her Job. She slides the glass across the desk.]

I suppose since we're not drinking tea, that one's out of the question.

[Innocent smile.]

[Vax sniffs the rum, before he has a sip. Coconut? How fitting. He cracks a smile, then he leans backward, and nods. He suspected she did fortune reading back home; no surprise to find she's been learning the local methods.

He looks at them, following each.]

Maybe if we have tea another time, yeah?

[He looks back up, cracking another smile.]

Which is your favorite? The Tarot, like back home?

Yes, yes. We'll have tea another time~.

[Her tone sounds suspiciously sing-song. It might be because Vax is her new drinking partner, not her tea partner. Whoops. She takes a sip of her rum before continuing.]

I like them all, really...Tarot and star charts are both fun, but what's most important is what you want me to divine. If I know that, I can figure out the best tool for the job.

[She smiles, trying her best to sound professional about this.]

Mm-hm.

[No rush. Booze is better.

Vax has a sip, while he considers the question. What he wants her to divine... that's complicated. He has a reverence for this sort of stuff; he doesn't want to ask something too on point. The fates don't care if he lives or dies.]

I think I'd like to know if I'll make a difference here. If my -- if all of us heroes of light -- being here can make things better.

[A beat, then:] I hope that's not too heavy.

My, my. That is a bit of a heavy one, isn't it?

[She swirls her glass, takes another drink, and then sets it on a coaster before pushing it aside. He wants to know if he'll make a difference is what he said, isn't it? She's a little surprised to hear him lead with himself. Vax'ildan has always struck her as the very confident type, but...]

I don't think I need to divine anything to know the answer to that. Even at our weakest and smallest, I think all people are capable of making things better...that includes Heroes of Light and yourself.

[But a thought occurs to her. She reaches for her star charts, starting to hum as she looks them over.]

I'll read the stars for this one, alright? At least to start.

I got others, too, but maybe they can be a chaser.

[He cracks a slight smile, then takes a sip of his drink. Confident... well, he wouldn't agree, but it's complicated. He tilts his head to the side.

He smiles, then -- but he nods.]

I appreciate the vote of confidence. And the reading.

Vaikunthan star charts are a lot more difficult to read than the star charts from where I'm from. It's like the stars are dancing in the sky with a life of their own. They change a lot more quickly, like lovers moving from one stage of life to the next...so reading ahead to when Bahamut will arrive will be a little difficult. I'll do my best.

[But she's searching. She can only do so much on her own, but she's consulting a star globe, and then her astrolabe...she's actually pretty focused for once, which is a side Vax and many, many others haven't seen. Fortune telling is her hobby back home, but here it's one of her careers.

She starts suddenly.]

Ah! That's...an omen of bad luck, I think. ...So is that one...and that one is even worse...

[She furrows her brow. And then, with another start, she backs away from her star chart, bumping into the chair behind her desk and unceremoniously falling into it. She whines in pain before standing back up and moving back over to it.]

This one is...this one is...hold on...I think this one is 'luck in the sky!' But what does that mean?

Edited 2018-11-24 19:20 (UTC)

The stars are different, yeah? But... more different. I noticed they're not like Exandria's. But...

[He quiets down. Vax may not know how it works, but he knows to let her work. He watches, his head lowered, and his eyes narrowed.

His eyes widen, a little, at her declaration.]

Bad luck... that's not good. Luck in the sky, though? Do you--are you all right?

[Concern is there pretty instantly. He stands up, and then he offers a hand down to her.]

They're really lively. My, to have as much energy as these stars...don't you think that would be lovely?

[Lovely or not, the many, many signs of bad luck are a lot less fun to talk about. She takes his hand and stands up, thanking him, though she looks a little embarrassed. Working herself up like that over some predictions...she feels a little childish.]

I'm fine, I think. But I was hoping this would answer your question...that maybe the stars would tell us we're making a difference.

[She sighs and shakes her head. It's hard to push this out of mind. Bad luck, bad luck, luck in the sky. Which is stronger? The bad lucks, or the one good luck?]

I'm sorry.

[Vax scratches at the back of his head, before he nods.] I'd pay a lot to have that sort of energy every day.

[He shakes his head. He looks... well, far from happy about it. But Vax looks like there's determination in his eyes -- there's at least something that can be done. If they're not doing enough...

They need to do more.]

Don't apologize. This shit... it is what it is. If we sugarcoat it, if we lie to ourselves, then we'll all die when that damned dragon comes.

I wonder what I'd do with that sort of energy. Maybe I'd stop getting lost on the way to work...?

[There's a lot to unpack in her limited imagination there, but that's not the point they need to focus on. Even at times like these, she knows how to smile. There's a pit in her stomach, too, an anxiety, but she's not going to let it show. The idol always smiles.]

It's not great, but...the bad luck omens could mean anything. And it takes only one stroke of good luck to undo a string of bad luck sometimes, doesn't it?

Hmm. Maybe so, but where's the fun in that?

[Vax cracks another smile, but then he nods his head. He looks thoughtful for a moment, his smile fading into something more neutral.]

Yeah. Luck is just an opportunity, yeah? And fate is a guide. At least... I hope it is.

I think that when 'fate' is good, it's a blessing. When it's bad, it's something to overcome. But maybe I'm not allowed to be picky like that...?

[She shakes her head. Fate is nice when it's on her side, but when it's not, it's 'only a suggestion.']

We'll have to make the most of whatever this opportunity is, won't we? Or maybe the 'luck in the air' is us. Who knows?

I'd rather be picky. The alternative is thinking we have to go around, hoping things turn out all right, with no say, yeah? I like fate being a help or a hindrance.

[He nods his head, looking thoughtful.]

We're the luck... huh, I do like the sound of that. It's a nice idea.

And there are opportunities here, yeah?

If there aren't enough opportunities, we can make more. That's how I feel. I'm no stranger to hard work.

[She nods, affirming that belief.]

But you know, even if the stars didn't answer your question...I still think you're important here. I know I'll be counting on you, Vax'ildan.

[Video]

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video -> text?

video -> ACTION!!!!!!

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I'm going to ask the mods for something, so my next reply may take a while.

sure sure!

mod response gotten!

AAAAAAAAAAH I AM SO SORRY D: tags got away from me and notifs were an awful thing

oh my gosh I was worried my tag wasn't good asgsadgsadg

oh no I'm so sorry!! it was fantastic!

I just worry too much

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