[The knock on the door is answered quickly enough by a disheveled looking Diva in nothing more than her nightgown. One look at Hythlodaeus and she looks like she's gonna hurl...and she does.
A whole bunch of blue rose petals spilling out past her lips.]
[She sighs, slightly relieved, even though there's still a mess to contend with. Moving into the sitting room she brushes petals off a chair to take a seat, tucking herself up on it.]
You didn't tell me you had a lover... [Although she's not surprised. Boy pretty.] Tell me about him.
[Brushing up the petals that flutter to the floor, he smiles a little.]
Ah- his name is Emet-Selch. We have been friends for many thousands of years, but it was only here that we finally confessed our true feelings.
[Well, in a sense.]
He is irritable and perhaps a little possessive, but I know he cares for me and I care for him in return. He treats me well, as his Submissive and his lover. I could not ask for a more attentive and caring man, despite his prickly attitude at times.
[He laughs a little, heading across the room to grab a bucket he'd left in a corner for times like this, emptying the dustpan of petals into it and continuing to sweep.]
But he is very sentimental, you know. Always has been...
[He thinks of the crystal he created for Azem after they left the Convocation, thinks of the underwater city of Amaurot and the shade of himself within. Such a sentimental fool... but it's part of why Hythlodaeus loves him.]
And despite his outward appearances, he is a good man. He will always come to help a friend in need, even if he complains about it.
[He could clearly talk all day about the reasons he loves Emet-Selch.]
[She thinks of Tsurugi and all the terrible first impressions he's made. All the things people have said to her about him. Despite everything she knew there was a sweeter side to him, even if he didn't show it that often. Diva craved sentimentality but the way she showed her love was different from how he showed his. Sometimes that would cause her to be upset but she'd mostly come to accept him for how he was now, even if she did crave the same displays of affection others got from their lovers.]
I didn't realize you were older than me. I'm a hundred and seventy six but you've been alive for thousands of years...I wonder if I'll be around that long.
[He would be more willing to give Tsurugi a chance, but even Diva seems to struggle to say what his good qualities are. And seeing how unhappy she can get, he kind of resents Tsurugi for being the root cause.]
Mm... I've lost count of the years down to the exact one, as it happens. But I suppose that is to be expected. Would you like to be around for that long?
[He doesn't get why she wouldn't, but he's curious anyway.]
Only if I had someone to be around for that long with.
[She seems a bit pouty now as she slides back a bit into her seat, pressing her cheek against the arm of the chair.]
I have a bad habit of losing Chevalier, Saya only now spends time with me sometimes...and Tsurugi won't let me turn him yet. I promised I'd wait and give him time but I don't know how long that'll take. He won't even ask me to marry him yet. I don't want him to die and be without him.
Perhaps seeking out someone with such a short lifespan was not the best course... ah, but you love him, and I understand that once your heart is stolen, nobody else will do.
[He finishes sweeping and leans on the broom with a sigh.]
You need not "marry" somebody to be with them, surely? Forgive me, I am unfamiliar with the term...
He doesn't have to have a short lifespan though! Not if I turn him into a chiropteran like me...but you're right. I don't love anyone else the way I love him. He loves me...he really does. No one else ever has.
[At least Hythlodaeus seems to get it. She can't love anyone else. It's either Tsurugi or bust.]
Oh, do you not have weddings or marriages? It's really romantic. Different places do it differently but...it's a contract you enter with someone else. You exchange rings and vows and wear nice outfits and usually it takes place in a church. You swear to love the person in sickness and health and to be with them till death do you part.
Hmm. No, we never had such a thing. Partners would simply be together, and that was the end of that. Does a marriage lengthen one's lifespan? Is this why you wish to marry him?
[It would make more sense that way...]
I may be misunderstanding, but why part at the end of your natural lives? That isn't very romantic at all... surely a love that lasts beyond is more so?
No, I want to marry him because it means he's mine. No one else can be his wife except me. [Well, under normal circumstances.] It means we'll be even more of a family...it's something I really want. I want a wedding and to wear a pretty white gown...
[Seems like there's a lot of wanting going on here and no actual real justification for it. Ah, tradition.]
It doesn't lengthen someone's life and not everyone gets married for love - a lot of the time people don't get a choice in who they marry. It's done for money or they have to marry someone because they're told to or for the good of a country or to have babies. Before I came here I had a bridegroom picked out for me.
[She sighs, splaying out awkwardly like a cat. Maybe she should move to the sofa, she'd have more room to stretch...]
What do you mean? When you die you die. That's it. Some people say you'll meet people who died in Heaven or Hell when you die too but...I'd surly end up in Hell.
[Although honestly so would Tsurugi now that she thinks about it so maybe that wouldn't be so bad, all things considered.]
I thought it was supposed to be romantic... it seems like a pointless contract to me. Not being able to choose your own partner? Absurd.
[But perhaps he's missing the point.]
Oh, death has not stopped Emet-Selch and I. And I am sure that if you truly love each other, you will find each other in the lifestream the way we did.
[Though of course, soul sight helps a lot in that regard... but he truly believes that if two souls love each other deeply, they will find a way.]
It's not pointless! I don't agree with not being able to choose for yourself but a marriage has its merits...
[Or so she wants to believe. She's been so fixated and hooked on the idea and label that she never thought what it might seem like to outsiders. Was she going about this all wrong?
No. She doesn't want to think about that. Don't mind her as she slides off the chair and flops onto the ground like a petulant child. Only to cough up a few more petals.]
I don't even know what the lifestream is...does that even exist here? When people die they sometimes come back or they're gone forever...or they'll return and not remember anything at all.
But what are those merits? Forgive me, I seem to be misunderstanding...
[He doesn't want to be contrary, he just doesn't get it.]
Hmm. I'm not sure it exists here, come to think of it. Certainly strange that we should lose memories upon death here, too...
[He shrugs.]
In any case, 'twould seem your best course of action is to simply turn Tsurugi so that he might live longer. Though if he does not wish to, there is little to be done. How exactly does one turn into what you are, anyway...?
[The unfortunate thing for Diva is that her understanding of marriage is a very baseline one, fully formed by fiction and what little she had learned from her handlers. It seemed almost fairytale-esque - mostly because that's what made up her view of it.]
To turn someone I have to drink them nearly dry of all their blood and then give them mine to drink in turn. They'll then become a chiropteran and one of my chevalier.
[Pouty, pouty. He doesn't agree and she can tell. He probably thinks she's dumb for it. Oh well...]
Chevalier are bound by blood to their queen. I'm the progenitor of my kind and so is Saya. We were born but chevalier are sired by us directly. Chevalier means knight, by the way. They protect us and are loyal to us.
[He doesn't think she's dumb, he just thinks he's completely misunderstood the point.]
I see... oh, do not look so glum, friend.
[He holds a hand out to help her to her feet.]
I shall attend to your bedroom and find something to catch these petals in for you... I suggest resting in bed while I clean. We can speak of happier things, and perhaps the company will take your mind off things.
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[Getting into his uniform and making his way to Diva's home doesn't take long, and soon he's knocking on the door.]
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A whole bunch of blue rose petals spilling out past her lips.]
Guh...
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[He had stepped smoothly back to avoid anything getting on his shoes, but to see that it's petals... he sighs.]
You too, hm?
[He ushers her back inside. He doesn't know what the flowers mean but she's not the first case he's seen.]
Come, get inside... where is the worst of the mess? Do you need anything? I am unsure of how to help you...
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In here is the worst...and my bedroom. Will you stay with me? Tsurugi's at work and I don't feel like sending him feet pictures to get him to respond.
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[He asks it innocently as he conjures up a broom and dustpan, starting to sweep up the petals.]
In any case, he should respond because you're sick, not because you're sending him pictures...
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[She sounds a bit jealous at that but she raises a hand over her mouth to cough weakly, two more petals coming out in the process.]
He's busy at work probably... [Or she'll tell herself that much at least to make herself feel better.] I never get sick so this is weird.
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[Her lover gets stranger by the minute... and Hythlodaeus dislikes him a little more every time Diva tries to cover for him.]
My love had this same problem... he was coughing up petals.
[It hadn't lasted that long, though. At least, not that Hythlodaeus noticed- and Emet-Selch could hardly have kept it from him for too long.]
It should be over with ere long, if it is any consolation.
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[She sighs, slightly relieved, even though there's still a mess to contend with. Moving into the sitting room she brushes petals off a chair to take a seat, tucking herself up on it.]
You didn't tell me you had a lover... [Although she's not surprised. Boy pretty.] Tell me about him.
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Ah- his name is Emet-Selch. We have been friends for many thousands of years, but it was only here that we finally confessed our true feelings.
[Well, in a sense.]
He is irritable and perhaps a little possessive, but I know he cares for me and I care for him in return. He treats me well, as his Submissive and his lover. I could not ask for a more attentive and caring man, despite his prickly attitude at times.
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[She sighs again, a little dramatic as she hooks herself over the arm of the chair, hanging over it, her hair dangling onto the floor.]
I've met him before. He's really grumpy. Frowns a lot. I wouldn't have thought he'd have a lover like you.
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[He laughs a little, heading across the room to grab a bucket he'd left in a corner for times like this, emptying the dustpan of petals into it and continuing to sweep.]
But he is very sentimental, you know. Always has been...
[He thinks of the crystal he created for Azem after they left the Convocation, thinks of the underwater city of Amaurot and the shade of himself within. Such a sentimental fool... but it's part of why Hythlodaeus loves him.]
And despite his outward appearances, he is a good man. He will always come to help a friend in need, even if he complains about it.
[He could clearly talk all day about the reasons he loves Emet-Selch.]
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[She thinks of Tsurugi and all the terrible first impressions he's made. All the things people have said to her about him. Despite everything she knew there was a sweeter side to him, even if he didn't show it that often. Diva craved sentimentality but the way she showed her love was different from how he showed his. Sometimes that would cause her to be upset but she'd mostly come to accept him for how he was now, even if she did crave the same displays of affection others got from their lovers.]
I didn't realize you were older than me. I'm a hundred and seventy six but you've been alive for thousands of years...I wonder if I'll be around that long.
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[He would be more willing to give Tsurugi a chance, but even Diva seems to struggle to say what his good qualities are. And seeing how unhappy she can get, he kind of resents Tsurugi for being the root cause.]
Mm... I've lost count of the years down to the exact one, as it happens. But I suppose that is to be expected. Would you like to be around for that long?
[He doesn't get why she wouldn't, but he's curious anyway.]
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[She seems a bit pouty now as she slides back a bit into her seat, pressing her cheek against the arm of the chair.]
I have a bad habit of losing Chevalier, Saya only now spends time with me sometimes...and Tsurugi won't let me turn him yet. I promised I'd wait and give him time but I don't know how long that'll take. He won't even ask me to marry him yet. I don't want him to die and be without him.
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[He finishes sweeping and leans on the broom with a sigh.]
You need not "marry" somebody to be with them, surely? Forgive me, I am unfamiliar with the term...
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[At least Hythlodaeus seems to get it. She can't love anyone else. It's either Tsurugi or bust.]
Oh, do you not have weddings or marriages? It's really romantic. Different places do it differently but...it's a contract you enter with someone else. You exchange rings and vows and wear nice outfits and usually it takes place in a church. You swear to love the person in sickness and health and to be with them till death do you part.
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[It would make more sense that way...]
I may be misunderstanding, but why part at the end of your natural lives? That isn't very romantic at all... surely a love that lasts beyond is more so?
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[Seems like there's a lot of wanting going on here and no actual real justification for it. Ah, tradition.]
It doesn't lengthen someone's life and not everyone gets married for love - a lot of the time people don't get a choice in who they marry. It's done for money or they have to marry someone because they're told to or for the good of a country or to have babies. Before I came here I had a bridegroom picked out for me.
[She sighs, splaying out awkwardly like a cat. Maybe she should move to the sofa, she'd have more room to stretch...]
What do you mean? When you die you die. That's it. Some people say you'll meet people who died in Heaven or Hell when you die too but...I'd surly end up in Hell.
[Although honestly so would Tsurugi now that she thinks about it so maybe that wouldn't be so bad, all things considered.]
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I thought it was supposed to be romantic... it seems like a pointless contract to me. Not being able to choose your own partner? Absurd.
[But perhaps he's missing the point.]
Oh, death has not stopped Emet-Selch and I. And I am sure that if you truly love each other, you will find each other in the lifestream the way we did.
[Though of course, soul sight helps a lot in that regard... but he truly believes that if two souls love each other deeply, they will find a way.]
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[Or so she wants to believe. She's been so fixated and hooked on the idea and label that she never thought what it might seem like to outsiders. Was she going about this all wrong?
No. She doesn't want to think about that. Don't mind her as she slides off the chair and flops onto the ground like a petulant child. Only to cough up a few more petals.]
I don't even know what the lifestream is...does that even exist here? When people die they sometimes come back or they're gone forever...or they'll return and not remember anything at all.
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[He doesn't want to be contrary, he just doesn't get it.]
Hmm. I'm not sure it exists here, come to think of it. Certainly strange that we should lose memories upon death here, too...
[He shrugs.]
In any case, 'twould seem your best course of action is to simply turn Tsurugi so that he might live longer. Though if he does not wish to, there is little to be done. How exactly does one turn into what you are, anyway...?
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[The unfortunate thing for Diva is that her understanding of marriage is a very baseline one, fully formed by fiction and what little she had learned from her handlers. It seemed almost fairytale-esque - mostly because that's what made up her view of it.]
To turn someone I have to drink them nearly dry of all their blood and then give them mine to drink in turn. They'll then become a chiropteran and one of my chevalier.
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[Just perhaps not to Hythlodaeus.]
'Tis not up to me to tell you what to hold close to your heart, after all.
[And if marriage makes her happy, who is he to contest it?]
Hmm... an extreme method of prolonging one's life, but if it works I suppose I cannot fault it. What does it mean to be a chevalier?
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Chevalier are bound by blood to their queen. I'm the progenitor of my kind and so is Saya. We were born but chevalier are sired by us directly. Chevalier means knight, by the way. They protect us and are loyal to us.
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I see... oh, do not look so glum, friend.
[He holds a hand out to help her to her feet.]
I shall attend to your bedroom and find something to catch these petals in for you... I suggest resting in bed while I clean. We can speak of happier things, and perhaps the company will take your mind off things.
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