[x] Why "Inaba"? Is she familiar with the tale?
[x] Why "Inaba"? Is she familiar with the tale?
[x] Why "Inaba"? Is she familiar with the tale?
[x] Why "Inaba"? Is she familiar with the tale?
Lily smiles mischievously at the query.
"Which tale do you mean? That of Onamuchi or that or Amaterasu seeking a new palace?" the blonde shot back, with Shinji blinking in shock, as he really hadn't expected a foreigner - much less one part of the insular magical world of practitioners - to know the legends of his homeland. "Yes, I know of them. I like tales about rabbits, you see."
"Oh?" Shinji inquired. "And why is that?"
"Because I like stories about the moon. Self-evident, yes?" Lily quipped, with Shinji's mouth making an O of realization, as he remembered both her true name, and the translation of her alias.
"...heh, I suppose so," the boy replied. "Sorry I didn't realize that sooner. But perhaps I simply was too fascinated with...moons to be looking for deeper meanings," he said slyly.
The girl merely laughed and patted him on the cheek.
"You should be should be careful, Matou," she murmured, the faintest hint of a smirk on her lips. "The more you say such pretty lies, the more others might begin to believe them. Worse, you might begin to believe them too. Such is the fate of all too many pretty liars who speak such flowered words."
Shinji swallowed, almost flinching from the sudden too-intimate contact.
"I...sorry," he demurred, his face flushing red almost as he'd been burned.
"Don't be. You don't know me, so I can't really blame you for your missteps. Not really. No more than those who see me in school or know only one of my many names," the girl replied. "People place such meaning in names, and yet what's in a name? Would a rose by any other name not smell as sweet?"
"...and who is speaking of flowers now?" Shinji shot back, though he knew it was a weak riposte. "That's...that's from a play, right?"
"Yes. One of the great tragedies, in fact," was Lily's response. "And what is your answer to my question?"
"That people care less about a things in and of themselves than the meanings they give them?" he hazarded, with the girl smiling as he said this.
"Just so," Lily murmured. "Humans are inveterate liars, you know, lying to others with every other breath, but to themselves with every other thought. And the worst thing is, sometimes their lies even become the truth. The mask becomes the face. The image the reality."
"...even for you?" the boy inquired, genuinely curious, if taken aback by this unexpected line of conversation.
"Especially for me," was her answer, as she patted him on the cheek again. "So, be careful Matou, with your pretty words around this pretty liar."
"...pretty liar?"
"Well, Iam pretty, wouldn't you say?" she asked demurely, looking at him through her eyelashes.
Shinji swallowed.
"I, uh..." he floundered, struggling for words, as no one had been quite this...direct with him. Or he was very susceptible to this type of thing, maybe. Who knew?
"Well," Lily whispered after a moment, smirking at how his tongue was truly tied. "I suppose the lack of an answer is an answer all in itself."
She let her fingers brush the back of his hand for just a moment, before turning away to Gabrielle, and escorting her back the way she came, speaking fast, flowing French that Shinji could not follow.
The final night of his time in Beauxbatons approaches, and as is traditional, the school will be hosting a Ball in honor of their guests - and to welcome students new and old.
Will Shinji attend?
[ ] Yes, with Selina
[ ] Yes, with Lily
[ ] Yes, with a flower in both hands
[ ] Yes, alone - all the better to mingle
[ ] No - he has better things to do
If he does not...what does he do?
[ ] Walk the grounds, under the light of the red, red moon
[ ] Sleep - he hasn't been getting enough lately anyway
[ ] Selina did say something about a magic carpet ride - maybe he should indulge her...
[ ] Go to the crafting workshop and make something
[ ]Write a letter to (write-in)
[ ] Work on Occlumency
Last edited by alfheimwanderer; December 16th, 2018 at 04:33 PM.
"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." - A.A. Milne
[X] No - he has better things to do
[X]Write a letter to Natsumi
Normally I would be all for a ball but I rather Shinji did not playboy around so I rather just spend time doing something else. Since Occlumency is a mostly a lost cause on his own given the Sakura New Years Event, we might as well write a letter. And I figure that Natsumi is the best person to write a letter to that would be shared to all three girls. And it would be much easier for the right words to come out if he writes to either Amber or Natsumi vs writing a letter solely to Miyuki.
[x] No - he has better things to do
[x] Walk the grounds, under the light of the red, red moon
[x] No - he has better things to do
[x] Walk the grounds, under the light of the red, red moon
What happened with the chance of become a animagus?
[x] No - he has better things to do
[x] Walk the grounds, under the light of the red, red moon
Background rolls have been done. I guess Shinji could go to the Alchemy Lab and pick up his Animagus potion tonight if he wants - or he could wait till its given to him use it when he gets back to Britain.Originally Posted by skulkidcachi90
Last edited by alfheimwanderer; December 17th, 2018 at 12:11 AM.
"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." - A.A. Milne
Given that it takes a month to fully become one, it's probably wise to start asap.
No - he's done the stuff in the background to allow the potion to be brewed. He would just need to drink it now.
"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." - A.A. Milne
Good to know then.
[x] No - he has better things to do
[x] Walk the grounds, under the light of the red, red moon
While under most circumstances, Matou Shinji would have enjoyed going to the ball, a few factors made him choose otherwise. First, while he knew the basics of how to dance, he wasn't a master of the art, and he feared that at Beauxbatons, that would just lead to him embarrassing himself. Second, the last time he'd been to a ball, he'd spoken the language of the attendees, and had at least not seemed a total bore - while here, English was probably a second language to people at best, and it would feel quite awkward trying to speak through intermediaries. It truly was a pity there was no translation spell, but alas, even True Magic couldn't pull off something like that.
And then, there were his mishaps involving beautiful young women, which he hoped - really, really hoped - wouldn't make their way back to Senpai's ears.
Being Selina's "soul sister" (because soulmate sounded both inaccurate and far too intimate for his liking), as they practiced forbidden arts together, and traveling alone with her to Tarascon for the festival.
Going shopping with Lily and Selina - and getting pictures with them at the beach - with all of them in swimsuits, no less.
And of course, his encounter with the godde--
His mind screeched to a halt as he corrected himself.
His encounter with the part-Veela Fleur Delacour, who Lily had told him was a member of a magical species whose very presence was enough to cause weak-willed men to lose their wits. (Which was why he was very glad he hadn't mentioned this "goddess" encounter to her, and had stuck with Fleur's version of events, as Lily was already difficult to impress).
Part of him felt shame that even now, he was thinking of her as a goddess made flesh, and that even knowing what he would become like around her, part of him still wanted to be around her.
...to attend the ball, which she would apparently be attending, and request a dance with her, no matter how foolish it might make him look.
...but that part he stamped viciously into the dirt, forcing himself to think of Senpai, to think only of Senpai and to remember how disappointed she would be if he made himself a fool. After all, a fool couldn't be by Senpai's side...even if he was a fool to think he could one day reach it to begin with.
Instead of dancing the night away with one - or more - companions, the boy found himself walking the gardens of Beauxbatons, at the grounds illuminated by the crimson light of the moon above.
'The moon...'
As he walked, as he glanced about, an odd fact from Animagus Studies - the class he was taking at Beauxbatons - came to mind: that all the arts of "magic" were at least somewhat susceptible to the influence of the heavenly spheres, and no branches more than those based in transformations.
Transfiguration, for one. Potions, for another.
As such, if one became an animagus via drinking an animagus potion (made with ingredients they'd painstakingly prepared, with the help of one Rachelle Lestrange, who had been the lab assistant for the class), what they became under the moon - much less the red moon - might be quite different than what they became by day.
The potion...
Now that he thought about it, there had been a lightning storm lately, hadn't there, so the potions would be ready...if that was so, then he could go to the alchemy lab and pick up his vial of animagus potion so that he might complete his transformation on this moonlit night.
...or he could wait till he was back in Britain, when others might be around to help him in case something went wrong of course.
What will Shinji do?
[ ] Get (and use) the vial - fortune favors the bold
[ ] Wait - the vials will be handed out tomorrow, and he would rather do this more safely
"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." - A.A. Milne
[X] Get the vial - fortune favors the bold
[X] Get the vial - fortune favors the bold
[x] Get (and use) the vial - fortune favors the bold.
Is it a "I have a bad feeling about this" moment?
And why would you have such a moment?
"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." - A.A. Milne
[x] Get (and use) the vial - fortune favors the bold.
[x] Get (and use) the vial - fortune favors the bold.
From the hands of Rachelle Lestrange, who is on duty on the Alchemy Lab, he receives the vial, or rather the enchanted, insulated case in which it is packed. As she does so, the young Flamel Scholar takes care to mention that using this particular potion under the light of the red moon could have some unexpected effects, given that with things as delicate as this - a working rooted in blood, transformation, and the influence of the very world itself, even a slight perturbation might cause have outsize effects.
Shinji thanked her for her advice, but was undeterred from his path as he walked out from the alchemy lab back under the crimson moon, whose ruddy light almost made the great fountain seem like it was filled with blood.
Blood.
Blood-red was the color of the liquid inside the vial when he opened the case, a liquid that seemed almost alive, pulsing in time with his heart.
Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba...thump.
Setting the case down, he took the vial from it and uncorked it, bringing it to his lips.
This would be the moment of truth. The moment when he discovered what kind of creature he was most like in his heart of hearts, what his choices had made him to be.
Did he...did he want to know?
Yes.
Under the red moonlight, he downed it, as the world fell away, and he too fell - fell into a haze of blood, with him stumbling along some hidden path.
Images flashed through his mind.
The earth. The moon.
The falling stars.
Comets.
He felt himself falling.
No, flying.
No, running.
Many forms, many possibilities, as yet unresolved, with the water/ground/only sky beneath him as his perceptions wavered and he found himself being predator/prey/parasite all at once, changing from one to the next to the next, seeing out of thousands of eyes, hearing from thousands of ears.
Could I get 3-5 d20 rolls, please? One per person, if you would kindly.
"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." - A.A. Milne
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